


Even In The Darkest of Places

by Fawnthefox



Category: One Piece
Genre: ASL Brothers, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Brainwashing, Kidnapping, Slavery, Stockholm Syndrome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27260998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fawnthefox/pseuds/Fawnthefox
Summary: One year ago Luffy and his brothers were taken captive aboard a slave ship. They are given their chance to escape when a renowned pirates group comes crashing into their lives. Now, after spending months apart Sabo has to reunite with his brothers while steering clear of the pirates that ‘just want to help’. Whitebeard/ Slave ASL fic.
Comments: 38
Kudos: 159





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I know this idea has been done before. A million times. But what can I say other then I am a fan of it. I really tried my best to make this one a bit unique. Hopefully I did an okay job at it. Ace and Sabo are selfless angels and Luffy is a little ray of sunshine who doesn’t realize the situation he is in.  
> Warning for like so- so many things: Slavery, swearing, child abuse, child abduction, kidnapping, gun violence, torture, death and graphic depictions of violence.  
> X-posted on FF.net

The ship had stolen one of their nurses. And the Whitebeards did not take kindly to their own being stolen. Not at all.

This wasn’t their full force. Although any more trouble and Whitebeard might change his mind about the hold order for the Moby. Instead he had sent a couple of his commanders and their carefully selected division members. The thing with these types of situations was, they were messy. The networks for slave traders were extensive. And if you weren’t careful backup could be called on an invaded ship, and in turn the backup could call backup and so on. All in all the situation called for a certain level of efficiency, ruthlessness and experience that came with being a commander or long time crew member. Which was what led to five commanders and twenty-seven crew mates invading the ship.

The nurses name was Rose. She was a shy girl, still learning the world of medicine. But she was sweet and Oyaji had taken a shine to her. She had a wonderful bedside manner and was apparently the only nurse who could convince their captain to stop drinking, even if it was only for a night. So of course, they were pissed. And yes, they would be getting her back.

They attacked at midnight. By that time the ships lights were mostly dark and it appeared that most of the crew had gone to bed. The ship, a massive transport vessel, was anchored a couple hours offshore of some backwater island. About three days sail away from reaching it’s intended destination at Sabaody where their human cargo could be sold and bartered like livestock. It was disgusting. But this ship would never make it there. Not if they had anything to do with it.

The team invaded silently, Marco in the lead as they climbed up from their boat, hidden in the shadow of the much larger boat that dwarfed theirs several times over. Marco was the first to step foot on deck, he dealt with the night guard quickly. Silencing him before he even knew they were there. He summoned the others up after that. Each of the group crossing the railing to come stand on the deck besides him. None of them were smiling. What was there to smile about?

“We get in, we get her and then we get out and burn this whole thing to the ground.” Marco reminded his crew mates, meeting each one of their eyes. “Bring all of their captives with us. I do not want us to overlook a single innocent.”

“We never do.” Fossa had been smoking. As he always was. But now he flicked the cigar overboard. Blowing the last puff of smoke through his nose. His face was serious. All of theirs were. This was dark stuff.

“I know.” He admitted turning back around. “Let’s go.”

The ship was odd. There had been a slight nagging feeling of wrongness on the deck, but it grew stronger and stronger the further Marco went. By the time he hit the bottom levels it was impossible to ignore the feeling. The problem wasn’t how inhuman ships such as these were, no they knew that already. Still horrifying but they had known that already. No, the problem came with how the ship was run. There were rules for these things. Universal between pirates, marines and even ‘cargo’ ships like these. To function ships needed a certain amount of around the clock work. They needed night watches, night patrols, night prep cooks, a shift guard. Sure, there was the occasional guard, one on the deck, one in the watch tower, and a single one asleep in the main hallway. But other than that the hallways were deserted. No one was at the wheel and instead a rope had been tied in order to keep it on course. It was all very odd.

But Marco didn’t have long to reminisce on the odd way this ship was run before they were discovered. The silence of the night was shattered in a second as the alarm was tripped. It was the insistent ringing of the emergency bell that was so loud it shook the frame of the ship itself. Light soon flooded the hallways and somewhere on one of the floors above Marco heard the stamping of footsteps as the first responders rushed to the scene.

Not good. He had hoped they could avoid this. These types of things ran smoother when the alarm wasn’t tripped. Backup would be called. There was nothing he could do about that other than hope it was far enough away that it wouldn’t reach them in time. Somebody on the crew had messed up. And Marco knew it wasn’t him, one of the newer members most likely. It was no matter. Mistakes were inevitable.

He sprinted down the stairway, hitting one of the lower levels of the ship. There was a guard here. That’s how he knew he had gotten the right floor. The man was standing in the middle of the hall confused by the alarm but not smart enough to be alert. His eyes widened when he saw Marco and his hands fumbled with his gun. But he was too slow, far too slow. Marco shoved him against the wall, his head hitting the wood with a loud crash as the man slumped over. It was always the weak ones wasn’t it? Who thought they had the right to control other people? To lord over them like a farmer to livestock. How ignorant. 

Marco snatched his keys as he stepped over the man, unlocking the door to the prison cells. And that was when he realized something was seriously wrong here. The over whelming stench of death hit him and he had to cover his nose with his sleeve to stop himself from turning away. Something horrible had happened here.

The hallway was lined with cells on either side. Each of them cruelly small. But oddly enough the first cell was empty, as was the second and third and fourth. In fact all the cells he searched were empty except there were clear signs people had been living in them. Blankets and food scraps. So where were they.

Marco got his answer down the next hallway.

The only cell still inhabited by ‘prisoners’ was the last one. That was where he found his lost crew mate. Although he had been too slow.

She lay on the floor, cushioned by thin blankets in a makeshift bed. She looked so- so- peaceful. Her golden hair had been arranged around her like a halo and her left hand lay over her stomach. As if she were simply having a peaceful rest here on the floor of this horrible place. Her face soft and content.

Her other hand was preciously clasped by her cell mate. The only other inhabitant of the entire floor.

It was a boy. A dirty boy whose face was covered by bruises and dirt. Even his fingers were a horrible purple shade as they tangled with her pale ones. He was watching her, or rather watching over her as she rested. He would be watching for a while.

“No,” Marco breathed as he felt the hurt shoot through his chest like the blow of a sword.

The boy looked up sharply. Unaware of the man’s presence. He pressed backwards but didn’t let go of her hand.

“No- no-no, Rose.” Marco put a hand to his mouth as he grabbed the bars. She looked angelic. Her face and hands had been cleaned carefully. Mercifully. But Marco could see the purple bruises on her cheek. And worst of all- her chest wasn’t rising.

“When?” He said not tearing his eyes away from her.

“A few hours ago. I’m not really sure.” The boys voice was quiet as he looked back down at her.

God a few hours. If only they had been quicker. If only they realized sooner. If only they had watched her better. The guilt swirled around his head as he reached for the keys unlocking the door.

The boy watching him the entire time but Marco hardly noticed. Unable to look away from his friend on the floor. 

“You were her friend?”

Marco nodded numbly as he knelt down beside her, brushing her cheek with his knuckles. She was cold. He had spoken those words out loud without realizing it. Not until the boy besides him moved a little bit.

“Here,” He said softly, offering Marco the hand he had been holding. He took it, feeling the warmth of her fingers. Kept warm by the hands of this child this entire time. Marco felt appreciation, the type he could never be able to express as he clasped her pale hand between his own. He gently kissed her knuckles in a goodbye. And for a moment he could imagine she felt it. 

“We failed you.” He told her as he let go, putting her hand over the other, arranging them on her stomach. “But we will bring you home. You don’t have to stay here anymore.”

He could feel the boy’s eyes watching him the entire time. Too closely for Marco to give her a real goodbye, that would have to wait for later. When she was back on the ship surrounded by family and friends. They would take care of her, give her a proper send off. And they would all mourn her.

“You did this?” Marco asked finally.

The boy was silent for a moment before he spoke, turning away from Marco to look down at her as well. “She deserved better. I couldn’t save her. So I did what I could for her.”

“You were holding her hand… all this time?”

He just shrugged. “She asked me to hold it. She didn’t want to be lonely at the end. I didn’t want to let go. It was the least I could do for her. I wish I could have done more.”

Marco turned to him. He really was young wasn’t he. “Thank you.” He told the boy. “For looking after my friend when we couldn’t.”

Blue eyes met his own. “She believed you would come; she said her friends were coming.” He told him.

“I know she did. I wish I could have.”

“No!” He insisted gently. “Even right at the end she knew you would come for her. So she wasn’t scared. She knew she wouldn’t get to say goodbye. She knew you would come get her. So she was happy.”

That was just so like Rose wasn’t it. Marco turned away. Keeping his emotions under the surface. He reached out, tucking a stray wisp of her hair behind her ear.

“What’s your name?” He asked. When the boy didn’t say anything, he began. “I’m Marco.”

“You’re a pirate?”

Marco nodded. There was usually a certain amount of fear from people when he admitted it to them but if this boy felt it, it didn’t show on his face.

“She wanted her mother to know.”

“I will tell her.” Marco promised. Someone on the crew would inform her.

“Sabo,” The kid said after a moment. “My name is Sabo.”

“Sabo can you tell me what happened to all the other people? Every cell is empty, but this ship is headed to port.” Surely it wouldn’t return without a full haul of ‘cargo’.

“It was full,” the boy said.

“Then where are all the captives?”

“Their dead.”

“What? How. Was it sickness?” Sometimes in conditions like these diseases were known to break out. Although usually there were more survivors.

“Not a sickness,” The boy told him. “A week or two ago the guards started to get rid of us. They threw half of the prisoners overboard.”

“And the other half?” Marco pressed.

“They died,” The kids voice sounded hollow. “. After they threw the other’s away the guards started to attack the rest of us, the injuries got to them and they just drifted away.”

To reiterate what was going on in this place? Why would a merchant ship turn on it’s merchandise? It was money in their eyes they were destroying. Right before they reached the auction where they could cash in.

“Do you know why Sabo?”

“Something went wrong,” The boy said after a moment.

“What?”

He just shrugged and Marco sighed, tucking the blankets tighter around his fallen friend. “But you two survived? Longer than the others.”

“We didn’t break so easily.” He rose to his feet slowly, stretching out the sore joints that came with sitting on the floor for hours at a time.

That was their Rose.

“Are there any other survivors?”

The others voice seem to faulter. “I- I um- I don’t know.” He forced out and there was something so profoundly sad in his eyes. “I don’t know.” He said again.

“Listen Sabo,” Marco said. “If there are, we will find them.”

“You’re going to take her?” He asked moving his eyes back to the woman.

Marco nodded.

“Thank you.”

And then the kid slammed into him with all the strength he had left. He pushed Marco’s head against the wall, hard enough to hurt him, if he were a normal person that was.

By the time Marco realized he had taken the keys the boy was gone.

* * *

When the alarm had tripped the captain initially didn’t hear it. He was still quite drunk from the other night. As he always was.

Although he already knew what it was. One of the slaves had a habit of escaping. This would be the seventh time. Although they never tried to get away, rather they seemed like they were searching the ship, starting at a different level each time, opening every door on their way through. They always got caught pretty quickly, and then consequently punished. Yet they never seemed to learn. This would be the final time, he would make sure of it.

As he rose, he pulled his kid from his bed. He was still asleep. Earlier he too had been acting out and had a stern talking too. It seemed like bad behavior was going around lately. It hurt his heart to tell him off, but it was is job of course. Parents had to be strict. That was how children learned to obey. The kid was still asleep from earlier. The captain regretted their argument. His temper had gotten the better of him. But it just worried him when his kid acted out. What if he hurt himself? It was no good not to listen. Children should listen. Children should always listen.

He picked the kid up, lifting him out of his bed. It was a cramped bed that was for sure. And the kid constantly complained about how small it was. Children were always complaining. Lately he had little patience for it. He carried him across the room to place him in his own bed. As he often did in the early morning when he had to work. Boys needed independence if they were to grow up to be strong and brave. But on occasions such as these when he had to leave to attend his duties in the early hours of the morning, he often placed his son in his bed. Just in case he woke up and was scared of the noise. This way he would know the captain had it under control. Even if he wasn’t here to reassure him in person. The child would know that he was safe and protected from the scary world out there.

The only rule about this arrangement was he wasn’t allowed to leave. The ship was big and he could get lost. There were so many scary people out there. So, the captain enforced the rule. Because sometimes kids made accidents.

He kissed his forehead before he left. “I’ll protect you,” He promised.

After all that was what fathers did for their sons.

Even if their kids hated them for it. 

* * *

It was Jozu’s fault the alarm had tripped.

Not directly of course, he would never of made such a mistake. But as a division commander the failings of his underlings reflected back on him. So he was fine shouldering the mistake himself. Rose’s closest friend among them was a young man from Jozu’s division. They probably shouldn’t of let him come but he had begged so much they caved. On the condition that he tagged along with Jozu. A guard had seen them and went to sound the alarm bell but his friends had been eager to deal with him, only he didn’t do a complete job of it and the guard had only been briefly stunned. While their back was turned, he had escaped down the next hallway where he flipped the alarm system. Which in turn woke up every single crew member on the ship. Now it was a bit of a mess. They needed to act quickly.

He sent his crewmate to double back to the ship as he continued forwards, searching some of the lower levels. There was a bunch of crates, storage, water barrels, potatoes waiting to be peeled. And so on.

He caught the feint sound of banging near one of the corners. When he pressed his head against the floor it sounded like it was coming from below him. So Juzo followed the sound all the way to the hull where the banging was the loudest.

It was eerie down here, with dim lighting and the smell of dankness. As the ship moved the walls would creak and groan. But the noise was drowned out by the near insistent banging.

He pressed forwards until he hit a door at the end of the hallway. It was bolted shut and encased in steel. But it shuttered as whatever was inside beat down upon it.

“Hello?” He called not receiving any response. Not that he totally expected one. It was probably some horrible sea monster they had dredged up, waiting to gnaw on the bones of man. Something so frightening they had to store it in here. Away from the rest of the crew. He was tempted to walk away, but a larger part of him knew he had to open it. After all that was why they were here. And now that it had his attention, he was damn curious. So Jozu undid the dead bolt and unlocked the door.

It was pitch black inside. His eyes couldn’t make out anything in the darkness. And then he heard a sound. The scrape of metal over metal as something rushed towards him. He took a step back, his arm automatically hardening by itself into diamond. Just in time.

Something came at him with an impressive strength as he put up his arm to block it. And rightfully so as a metal pipe came into contact with the hardened surface of his skin. It snapped immediately but the attacker didn’t give up.

No, it wasn’t a monster after all was it. Rather the one who was attacking him was a kid. He had messy black hair and a wild look in his eyes as he came down upon his rescuer with a murderous intent.

“Stop!” Jozu

said as he reached his other hand out, grabbing the boy’s arm to pull him away to get a proper look at him.

He was a dirty, skinny thing, but there were undeniable muscles in his arms. He snarled, showing his teeth which were a bright white against his dirt covered skin. He the shackles around his wrists and the collar around his neck. This boy was a slave. A violent one.

“Hey listen,” he began. “I’m not them kid. I hate them too. “We’ll take you with us, away from here…”

And that was when the kid bit him in the hand of his unshielded arm. Jozu let him go out of surprise. The teenager might not of been stronger but he was faster and as soon as Jozu let go of he was out of there. Running down the corridors at breakneck speed. Leaving the man to chase after him. 

* * *

_“Give him back you bastards! Give him back or I’ll kill you. Every single one of you. I swear. Give him back- give him back! Please, please give him back to me. You can’t take him away from me. Don’t take him away from me. He’s all I have left! Please, he is all I have left.”_

_There was no answer from the dark hallway, and none of the guards even acknowledged him. By now they were used to this. He had been screaming for three straight days. But it didn’t matter. They never brought his brother back, either of them._

_Sabo fell against the bars, bringing his knees to his chest. He had to bite back the tears that were starting to collect in the corner of his eyes. Ace wouldn’t be crying right now if their positions were reversed. Ace never showed weakness. Probably because he didn’t have any. He never yielded to an opponent, even when they had him beat like right now. But Ace wasn’t here right now was he?_

_And that was because he never gave in. So they took him. Leaving Luffy and Sabo all alone here, in this too cold cell._

_Sabo had promised Ace he would look after their little brother while he was gone. He promised he would protect him. And he had. All on his own for nearly two months. He had taken responsibility for all of Luffy’s punishments. He had taken on extra work, done extra tasks and on occasional won fights for entertainment, all to get extra food for his brother who had started to starve._

_And then- then three days ago he had taken him away. Sabo didn’t know why, or for what purpose. Only that he was gone now. And he wasn’t going to bring him back. No matter how much he screamed. And Luffy, who had been so brave through the whole thing, had started crying for Sabo as they took him away._

_He didn’t even know if his brothers were still alive. He hoped they were. The guards told him that Luffy was. But the guards liked to lie. They forced Sabo to become their slave. They warned him that if he even thought about refusing an order they would kill Luffy. So he did everything they asked. He took care of the other prisoners, played doctor to their unfixable injuries even though he had no idea what he was doing._

_For the first time in a long time Sabo was truly and honestly alone._

…

Things hadn’t gotten better from there had they? No. Everything always had to get worse. Every single time in his life, when he thought he was honestly and truly screwed- things always got worse. What gods had Sabo pissed off. Was this just the penance he had to pay for being born with the diseased blue blood of the nobles. Then why was it always him, not his parents who the bad things seemed to happen too. Why was this Ace and Luffy.

But no, feeling sorry for himself would accomplish nothing. He could still fix things. He had too. Otherwise.

Sabo thought of his friend Rose, the peaceful look on her face, and of all the people they had lost in the last few weeks and he ran faster.

It had been about five minutes since he had shoved the man into the wall. No one had come after him yet, that was good. He hoped the invading pirates would help draw attention away from him. He had done this before after all. But this time would be different than before. This time he had a distraction and the keys.

He went to the kitchen first, digging through the knife drawer as he tucked one of the blades into his waistband. He knew this place like the back of his hand. One of the tasks he had been forced to do was prepare some of the prisoner’s food. They had always thought it was a punishment. Little did they know he liked it. More than that, it was a godsend. He would always do his best to make the prisoners food livable. And if he wasn’t assigned to the kitchen he wouldn’t have been allowed to ‘accidently’ make an extra each time for the isolation cell block. Nobody else in their right mind brought food to the prisoners in isolation. Which is why most of them had died months back. But he prayed, hoping against hope that not all had died. Because nobody ever let him recover the plates. So he honestly didn’t know. But he was about to find out. He took off again, heading towards the bottom of the ship.

“Please- please please be okay,” He repeated the words endlessly as he ran. “Don’t you dare leave us on our own here. Don’t you dare leave me.”

“You there!” A shrill voice broke out! “STOP SLAVE!”

Shit. Sabo paused as he heard the clicking of a gun behind him.

“Arms up, don’t move.”

One of the guards had been hiding in the side hallway. He had been so caught up in his own head he had overlooked them.

He did as the man said, slowly raising his hands behind his head as the marching of boots came closer. He turned around when the man instructed, to come face to face with the barrel of the gun.

“Where are you going in such a hurry?” The man asked and Sabo said nothing. “That’s right- nowhere.” He hissed as he pulled his handcuffs out. “Hands in front of you. No funny business.”

Sabo lowered his hands in front of him, his gaze never leaving the gun.

The man snorted as he fumbled with the restraints one handed. “At it again then?” He mocked. “The captain is going to kill you this time. Said so last time. Doesn’t want no more trouble from you.”

“Where is he?” Sabo growled. The man just laughed.

“Give up already. He doesn’t even know y-”

He never got the chance to finish the sentence. Sabo brought up his hands, the blade concealed in his sleeve digging into the skin just below his collar bone. Before he could even think about screaming, he swiped the blade upwards and the man was silenced.

Sabo worked quickly, dragging him back into the side hallway he had emerged from. He took the man’s gun, wiping his blade against his pant legs before tucking them both into his waistband. He took off again down the hallway, proceeding with more caution although the desperation and fear ruled out his better judgment.

There were few guards at the bottom levels of the ship and even less pirates. They were probably too preoccupied fighting one another. Sabo didn’t know who to route for. Neither he decided, hopefully they both killed each other. No, that wasn’t right. They were Rose’s friends. She would want more for them. So maybe that meant Sabo had to as well. Even if they ended up turning on him though. He didn’t like the idea of putting his fate in the hands of an invading pirate group. But he liked the slave traders even less. If he could just find his brothers, they could slip away. Then they would have to beg to no one for their lives. Their lives could be their own again.

Sabo hung onto that thought as hard as he could as he entered the hull of the ship. This was where the isolation cell was. One of them at least. But he wouldn’t bother with the others. He already knew those people had long since passed. 

“ACE!” He cried out now as he kicked a fallen crate out of his way. Rotten fruit spilled from it all over the floor, but Sabo ignored it.

“ACE! ANSWER ME!” He cried again listening for any sign his brother was alive.

In the past whenever Sabo could convince the guards to let him bring food to the isolation prisoners, back when their used to be more than one, they always accompanied him. And he was careful to keep the fact that he cared a secret. If they found out how desperate he was doing this out of love for his family, and not on a whim like he pretended they would have put a stop to it long ago. The two of them never got a chance to talk. Not with the guard watching him like a hawk. But he knew Ace knew it was him because every time he entered the room there would be a tapping. A light tapping but he could hear it none the less. Three taps and then a pause and another two.

When they were kids they made a lot of enemies for themselves. And to feel safe they would put up all these traps and defense measures around their tree house. They claimed it was for protection, and it was in part. But it was also just for fun. Three boys living alone in the woods had to entertain themselves somehow. So they had made up a secret knock. Three knocks followed by two meant things were okay.

Ace was trying to tell him he was okay. Even though Sabo knew he was lying, he lived for that sound. The guard would always say he had gone insane, but Sabo knew better. 

But it had been a long while since Sabo had heard the tapping. Since things had gone to hell nearly two weeks ago he hadn’t been allowed to bring food anymore. Instead the guards had kept him in the cell block, tending to all of the dying prisoners. One by one until only him and Rose remained. And Ace… he went hungry.

Three times in the last twelve days Sabo had managed to bribe one of the guards to bring him food. But he swore to himself that he would never think about how he did that again. And there was no way of knowing if they had actually done it or not. The guards lied. Constantly.

Sabo had been praying for the best but part of him expected the worst. After everything that had happened, he honestly didn’t know if he could handle finding Ace’s body starved or beaten to death.

He was preparing himself for horror, or to finally be reunited. But he did not expect neither to happen. When he arrived at the steel door his brother wasn’t there. The door had been left wide open. And Sabo’s heart shuddered in his chest.

“ACE!” He called again without a response. “Please-please,” He begged uselessly under his breath as he ripped a candle out of it’s holder, pushing into the room.

It was pitch black inside. The point was to drive the prisoner’s crazy without any contact or even light. Sabo had already known that. They had heard horror stories about the isolation cells. After all these months here, he had never been inside until right now. And he hated it. It was cold and dark and lonely. There was a cot in the corner and no other furniture in the entire cell. Sabo looked there first. There was blood on it, as well as bloody bandages on the floor. That didn’t make him feel better. He searched the floor finding nothing but the occasional drops of dried blood and the shards of a broken plate that had been smashed against the wall.

If Ace really wasn’t here anymore. Then, where was he?

With no clues and no hope Sabo pushed his back against the wall as he slid down it, tears of frustration and fear prickling in his eyes as he sunk down to the floor. Keep it together. He had to keep it together like he had been doing this whole time. He owed them that at least. His hand closed around a shard of the plate and for a moment he was confused how it had gotten all the way over here. And then he saw the drawing on the wall and understood. Ace had broken the plate so he could carve into the hard stone wall.

There, in the corner were two badly drawn figures. They were barely recognizable. Not surprising as Ace had done this in the dark after all. But he must have gone over them hundreds of times with the plate shard for it to be that deeply grooved into the wall.

The taller stick figure had a top hat while the smaller one was wearing a straw hat and had a scar under its eye. Ace had done the ribbon in dried blood. Super gruesome but Sabo couldn’t help but smile at that.

He put his thumb over Luffy’s face feeling the indent of the stone under his fingers.

“I’m going to find you,” He promised. “Both of you.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a hunt for the captain Thatch stumbles across his son, the ever friendly Luffy. And he realizes something is seriously wrong with the situation.

They had failed. Rose was dead. The mission was failed. But it didn’t have to be for nothing. They would save every single innocent and burn the ship to ash.

Thatch had met up with Marco. The moment he saw his friend’s grim expression he had known. They returned her to their ship, making sure she was safe before they went back to their mission. Marco had told him what the blond slave had said. They had been too late not only for Rose but for most of the others as well. They needed to find that boy, and the other survivors and figure out what had happened for the crew to start killing their expensive cargo. And they needed to do it quickly. Before reinforcements arrived.

Thatch went after the captain, figuring that was the best way to get answers. By this time the enemy ship was a mess of scattered guards fighting the pirates. Thatch had little doubt that his brothers and sisters wouldn’t have the crew sorely beaten and gathered up withing the hour. But the captain, he was his. 

He had gotten directions from the first guard who had tried to stop him. The captain’s quarters were near the top of the ship. As far away from the slaves as you could get. They had done some digging after Rose disappeared. The captain was known to be a heartless man. As all of the slave traders were. But his reputation for cruelty exceeded him. Although Thatch had also heard he was good at what he did. So it made no sense why he would snap now of all times. Slaves were money to these people. Cruel or not the more they delivered the more they got paid. Losing an entire shipment like this. Well that was a mistake their employers would certainly not forgive. Not like they would make it there now though.

Thatch broke down the door to the captain’s quarters. It was an impressive collection of rooms nicely furnished. The first of which was an office. Thatch heard the crunch beneath his foot as he passed the desk and crouched down to see what he had broken. There was a small collection of wooden army figures lined up besides the desk. Like the kind a child would play with. His weight had snapped the arm off of the general. He frowned as he picked it up. A weird thing for a captain of a slave ship to be playing with. Surely, he hadn’t brought his kids with him right?

He had. He had brought his kid. Or at least some kid. Which, to be clear, was horrible parenting.

When Thatch entered his bedroom, he found the kid whose toys were scattered across the floor of the office. A boy was asleep in the bed, peacefully snoring away. Apparently even monsters had children. Thatch froze when he saw him, a million things running through his mind. At the top of the list; Shit! This complicated things.

Unsure of what else to do he crossed the room, shaking the kids shoulder until he woke up. Sleep in his eyes as he sat up. Thatch was quick to cover his mouth.

“Don’t scream,” He told him. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The kid nodded, and there was no fear on his face, so Thatch took his hand away. Trusting him not to bring a swarm of guards upon them.

He looked young. Definitely still child age not yet a teenager. His skin and clothes were clean of dirt, and he didn’t look like he was starving. At least not right now. He was still quite small, and his skin was stretched tightly around his bones. His clothes were also much too large to be made for him. Instead they looked like adult clothes altered to fit him. His hair was messy, and sleep mused.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Thatch promised as he knelt beside him.

“Kay,” the boy said. He didn’t sound afraid. It was odd how normal he sounded.

“My name is Thatch.”

“Hi Thatch,” The kid smiled, just a little bit, as he spoke. “Whatcha doing?”

“I’m uh,” What was he doing. “I was looking for the captain. This is his room right?”

The boy nodded.

“Is he your dad?”

The kid’s nose crinkled at the question like he didn’t like the thought. He huffed a bit. “I guess.”

“You guess?” What does that mean?

When he didn’t answer Thatch tried again. “What’s your name bud?”

He tilted his head curiously but didn’t say anything.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me. I will understand,” Thatch promised.

“It’s not that.” The kid said.

“You’re not supposed to?”

“Maybe… I don’t remember right now.”

“That’s okay, maybe later.”

“No, I mean I forgot. I think It starts with an S.”

And the pit was back in Thatch’s stomach. Something was seriously wrong here if the captain’s son didn’t know his own name.

“Sam, Sal, Sock, Soup, Slead, Sabo, Sim, Slim, Sid, Skate-,” He sound out the names trying to find the right one. “Maybe it doesn’t have an S after all.”

“How do you not know?” Thatch asked in horror.

“I bet you forget things too!” He defended.

“Yea, sometimes I forget my friend’s birthdays or lose my wallet. Never my own name.”

That seemed to offend the kid as he glared at Thatch, sticking his tongue at him. “Jerk!’ He said.

“Okay, I’m sorry.” Apparently, that was a sore spot. “Kid I’m sorry. Your right I’ve done it from time to time.”

“Really?”

“Sure, can you tell me why you’re here? Where is your dad?”

“Don’t know?” He looked around, as if realizing his surroundings for the first time. “Sometimes he puts me here.”

“Why?”

“Uhh- I think it’s like a message or something…”

“What?”

“Like he does it when he has to work. I don’t really know. That’s what he says. So I don’t get scared or something when I wake up- which is stupid. Why would I get scared?”

“Sometimes kids get scared when their parents leave,” Thatch told him. “It’s totally normal.”

“I don’t get scared,” The kid said. “I just get bored… and hungry.”

“Can’t you just go get food?”

“I’m not allowed to leave.” The kid said.

And yet another red flag. If this wasn’t a cry for horrible parenting Thatch didn’t know what was.

“Okay that’s it! We’re going, you’re coming with me alright. We are going to find your dad.” And Thatch would get his answers one way or another.

The boy perked up at that. “Really! I can come!”

“Of course you can.” By the way he was reacting you would think he was never allowed to leave the room. 

“Can you get me out of this then?” The kid pulled the blanket aside, showing his right ankle. Red flag number three.

“Oh, What the hell!” Thatch hissed. He was going to break this man’s face for sure. What possible reason could he have for chaining a child to a bed. “You mean you actually can’t leave?”

The kid nodded, shaking his ankle. “It makes me sleepy. I can’t break it. I’ve tried.”

“It’s okay,” Thatch promised him as he felt the chain out. It was a new one. No weak points. Tied to the post of the bed securely. He tried a kink finding it unbreakable. Possibly sea stone. This just got weirder and weirder. 

“Why would your dad do this?”

“Uhh” The kid tilted his head, as he seemed to do when he was thinking hard. “I think it’s so I don’t leave.”

“I got that part. Why can’t you leave?”

“He says it’s dangerous out there. That people would hurt me, so I had to stay here. But I think I tried to leave too many times, so he doesn’t trust me.”

“That’s horrible.”

“But you said I could come with you right!” He looked so excited about the prospect of leaving it hurt Thatch’s heart. He smiled softly at him.

“Your covered in bruises.”

He hadn’t seen it at first but there was a huge purple bruise covering the kids face, another one on his neck, bandages on his wrists and ankles, and no doubt more under his baggy clothes. Someone had been hurting him. That was the final red flag. This man was dead. No matter if he was a father or not.

“Huh?” The kid looked down at himself. “Oh those, it’s fine. I want to come with you kay?” He smiled so brightly, showing his teeth.

Thatch nodded. “Yea. Let’s get you out of here.”

* * *

Two hours after invading the ship the pirates had cornered and captured at least half the crew. It was hard to say how many had gotten away. They were either hiding or regrouping for a counterattack. It wouldn’t matter. The pirates may be outnumbered but they were sure as hell not outmatched. They would find the rest, including the captain, question them, and then sink this god-awful ship. Rose would have to wait just a little bit longer.

“We couldn’t find any slaves still alive.”

Marco sighed to himself. This was a really dark day wasn’t it.

“There’s one- at least. He’s young. I’m not sure how old, but he’s still a kid. We need to find him before they do.”

“Two Marco, I found a boy in one of the storerooms.” Juzo interrupted. “I didn’t get a good look, but he seemed young. Black hair, super dirty. Be careful if you see him. He’s violent.”

“Noted,” Marco promised his friend. “We’ll find them. And any other’s we can.”

Marco turned to the group of captives in the next room. They were tied securely in the center. All of them looked up as Marco entered. Izo had been tasked, much to his displeasure, with watching him.

“You owe me,” He told him.

“You’re my favorite brother,” Marco promised with a tense smile.

“I’m always your favorite when I do you favors.”

Marco turned to the men, the smile falling from his face as he looked down at the people who had killed Rose. “I am going to ask you one more time and then I am going to get angry. Which of your prisoners are still alive?”

“…”

“Don’t test me today,” Marco warned. “You don’t want to see what I am capable of right now.”

“No, please.” One man cried out. “Listen we don’t know. I think it’s just that boy- the blond one.”

“Why him?”

“I don’t really know. It wasn’t intentional. We didn’t mean to keep him alive. He was like a monster or something. Tougher than the rest of them. That’s the only reason. I swear.”

“Then why would you kill your precious slaves right before you reached the auction? After you carried them all this way? I won’t ask again.” He added the threat heavy in his tone.

“We don’t know alright!” The man pleaded and the others nodded. “Just spare us please. It was the captains order.”

“Why!”

“Are you deaf!” The man cried, so fearful there were tears in his eyes. “I told you we don’t freaking know. We intercepted a message from HQ. I didn’t hear it but he freaked out. Said they were trying to screw us over. That we would screw them first. And that’s when we started letting the slaves die.”

“Wow, you guys really are monsters.” Izo told them.

“No!” The man cried in panic. “It’s just a job. You understand right. If it wasn’t us it would just be someone else. It’s money. Your pirates you have to understand.”

“We don’t understand anything.” Marco told him. “We might be criminals but there are some lines I would never cross. Not for all the money in the world. From what I saw you guys kidnapped the kindest person in this world along with two children and tortured the rest of the helpless people in your care to death. Just because things weren’t going your way. And still you have the audacity to try and beg for your lives. How do you think those people you killed felt? Did you show them mercy?”

The man was crying now. Tears of fear streaming down his face. No remorse in his eyes. “Please, I have a family.”

“So did she.”

Marco left. Leaving Izo to watch the captives. He was determined to find that boy. He had been Rose’s friend. He had stayed with her at the end, holding her hand long past the time most people would of. Doing what they couldn’t. Marco owed him a great debt. And he would repay him. Even if he wanted to be left alone.

He continued his search, looking on the upper levels this time. He found another one of the crew, concealed away. This one armed with a gun, waiting to shoot an unsuspecting pirate in the back when they crossed paths. Wasn’t he in for a surprise. Marco left him lying in the hallway, hopefully his brothers would find him before he woke up and caused more problems for them.

He made his way to the kitchen next. Figuring that was the first place a half-starved slave would go. And he wasn’t disappointed.

At first glance there was nothing amiss. The kitchen looked as one should on a ship this large, a little disordered. But Marco saw the blood. It started in the hallway, leaving a trail all the way to the pantry. Still fresh. And there was no path out.

Was it Sabo?

“Hello,” Marco called out coming closer to the door. “Is anyone there?” He put his hand on the doorknob, opening it. The pantry was empty.

And that’s when he attacked. A growl ripped from the cabinet behind him as a boy threw open the door, charging straight for him. Marco cussed as he jumped back, narrowly avoiding the swipe of the kitchen blade the boy wielded.

No, it wasn’t Sabo. Although he was clever. He must have noticed the blood trail he was leaving and doubled back to hide in the pantry when he heard Marco coming. This boy looked to be about the same age but his hair was pitch black and he was dirtier then Sabo had been. Both were obviously slaves but this one looked like a demon. His skin and clothes were coated in soot and he was visibly injured. 

Marco held his hands out to him in placation. “It’s okay. I’m not them.” He promised. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

But the words fell on deaf ears. When he charged Marco was ready. He caught the kid, grabbing the hand that held the blade while holding the kid against him. The move was meant to hold him back, not to harm him.

“I won’t hurt you.” He promised. “We’re just here for our friend.” The kid snarled in anger, sounding like an injured animal as he twisted and writhed in Marco’s grip. Marco sighed, tightening the hand that was on the boy’s fingers, forcing him to drop the knife. It hit the floor with a clatter, and he kicked it away with his foot.

“They held you captive.” He asked. “Come with us. We will take you away from here.”

“Get off!” He hissed desperately pushing against Marco’s arm. “I don’t need your help!”

“Your hurt,” Marco told him. “Badly.” That much was obvious.

“I don’t need anything from you people!”

“Kid were not them!” Marco told him and there was sympathy in his voice that seemed to set the kid off.

“I don’t need anything from anyone!” He hissed. “Let me go or I will kill you!”

There would be no reasoning with him it seemed. “Well we can’t leave you here. We are going to sink the ship.”

“GET OFF ME!” He snarled still struggling. “I’m not going with you damnit!”

“You want to stay here? With the people who held you captive?”

“Don’t pretend to know what I want!” The boy seethed.

“I’m trying to help you.” Marco told him but that seemed to set the boy off even more.

“I DIDN’T ASK FOR YOUR HELP!” He screamed.

This one was interesting. Marco saw real fire in his eyes. Like hell they were going to let him drown with the rest of the crew.

“Hey boss,” one of his ship brothers called, as they knocked tentatively on the door of the kitchen. “I heard the sounds of a struggle, everything okay.”

He felt the boy tense in his arms, trying to pull away but Marco held on tight. 

“Here,” He called to his crew mates as James emerged.

“Are you okay?” He asked unsurely looking from Marco to the teenager and then the blood on the floor.

“Can you take him?” Marco asked. “I think he’s injured.”

“Uhh- sure.”

“He’s a fighter. You sure?”

“I can do it,” James promised looking anxious. But Marco knew he was stronger than he gave him credit for.

“Don’t you dare!” The kid hissed as he struggled harder, if that was even possible. Despite how worn down he must be he was incredibly strong. Hopefully James could handle it. But as he carefully handed the struggling teenager over to the man his eyes became desperate. “Don’t! Please stop!”

“What’s here that is so important?” Marco asked him. To no one’s surprise the kid didn’t answer.

“We can help you,” Marco told him seriously as James adjusted his grip on his arms, pushing them behind his back so he couldn’t lash out. “You just need to talk to us.”

The kid spat blood onto his face. Marco sighed as he wiped it off with his sleeve. “Take him to the ship,” He told his brother. “Make sure he can’t get back out. And be careful with this one.”

The boy growled.

“He has murder in his eyes.”

In hindsight he probably shouldn’t have trusted someone else with him. But Marco figured James could handle it.

He figured wrong.

* * *

_The three of them sat on a blanket in the middle of their cell. It was cold, damp and dark. But apparently not even forced slavery could stop Luffy’s infectious smile. He kept giggling despite Ace and Sabo constantly having to remind him to stay quiet. He was better during the day, which was a blessing, but right now all the guards were either in bed or asleep at their post. The only people awake to hear him were the slaves in the other cells. And none of them were about to tell the happiest among them to shut it._

_Ace had picked up a small rock from the deck and brought it back to keep Luffy entertained. They used it to draw on the cement floor of their cell. It wasn’t much but it did pass the time. And Luffy had fun, which was why he kept laughing._

_It was like tic-tac-toe but much-much more complicated. They had a lot of free time on their hands after all._

_“Here?” Ace asked him and Luffy shook his head, a delighted smile on his face._

_“Here?” He pointed at the shakily drawn X on the floor, working his way down Luffy’s line._

_“Nope!”_

_“Here!”_

_He looked away, avoiding their eyes. “I dunno…I forget.”_

_Ace grinned at Sabo. “It’s here.”_

_“For sure,” He agreed._

_“Guys it’s not!” Luffy tried._

_“Damn Lu, your poker face is too good.” Sabo teased and he stuck his tongue out, a gesture the other returned._

_“It’s not that one Ace! So don’t pick it kay?”_

_“Do it,” Sabo encouraged. “I want to go to bed.”_

_“It feels too easy.” Ace argued._

_“That’s never stopped you before.”_

_“Don’t do it!” Luffy encouraged. “It’s not that one… honest. Like I’m serious.”_

_“So it’s not the third one?”_

_Luffy shook his head. “Yea it is!”_

_His brothers stared at him._

_“AHH! I mean not it’s not. It’s not.” He corrected and Ace laughed._

_“Well I guess I trust you. I mean you wouldn’t lie right? Then which one is it?”_

_“The first one!”_

_“Guess I’m picking that when then.”_

_“There is no other option.” Sabo agreed, as Ace pointed to the first X._

_“YES!” Luffy shot up like a spring, cheering all the while. Under where he had been sitting was three X’s in his crappy handwriting._

_“I won! I won!” Luffy was overjoyed, like embarrassingly so. He ran around their tiny cell jumping up and down._

_“Hey lady!” He cheered, running to the bars. “Lady!”_

_“Luffy let her sleep,” Sabo said quickly getting up. “Sorry about him,” He apologized to the woman, laying in the adjacent cell._

_“No-no,” She said sitting up. She reached a pale hand threw the bars to pat his head and Luffy beamed. “At least someone’s having fun. Good job sweetie.”_

_“He didn’t even win.” Ace said. “He literally just won a round. He still lost, by a lot.”_

_“By seventeen points,” Sabo said waving goodnight at the woman as he came to sit down beside them. They watched Luffy do a cartwheel, and then a backbend before collapsing onto his back. Exhausted from the extended effort under the influence of sea stone._

_“This was the first point I ever got!” Luffy told them, still smiling like he had won the world. “I tricked ya,” He said happily._

_“Yea I figured.” Ace told him._

_“Yea, because I just told you.”_

_“Can I have a do-over?” Ace asked. He was feeling less charitable after Luffy’s extensive gloating. Most people wouldn’t brag about winning a single point. Luffy was really a glass half full kind of guy._

_“Let him have this.” Sabo told him. “Look how happy he is. And you beat me by two points so you’re still the winner.”_

_“Good for me.” Ace said._

_“I bet I’ll beat you next time! I’m sure of it.” Luffy said happily. An embarrassing and crippling defeat yet again seemed to do nothing to dampen his spirit._

_“I wish I had that much misplaced self-confidence.”_

_This time Luffy stuck his tongue out at Ace, who flicked him off in reply._

_“Wow, winnings really gone to your head hasn’t it.” Sabo said and Luffy nodded. “We can team up next time and beat him yea?”_

_“Yea!” Luffy cheered as Ace wiped the scribble marks of their game away with his palm and a little spit._

_“You can’t team up if there are only three of us.”_

_“How much of a team up do you think it is if Luffy can’t get a point?” Sabo pointed out._

_“Yea, I guess that’s fair.”_

_“I can get all the points!” He said proudly._

_“Whatever you say.” Ace yawned, stretching widely. And Sabo didn’t miss the way he winced as he did so. “Let’s go to bed.”_

_Their cell was small, and there was nothing, but a straw filled mattress and a blanket for the three of them to share. But they had made do with worse._

_They pushed together in the corner, sleeping in a pile. Just like they were back home in their sunny country. So close that Sabo could hear every breath of his brothers as they drifted off to sleep._

_The situation was bad. Really bad. They had been here for almost two months, with no sign of things getting better. They had no plan, no idea what to do. Resourceful as they were- they were still young. Not yet ready to take an entire ship of slavers down with their hands cuffed behind their backs._

_But Sabo would think of something. He always did. Until then, they stuck close together. And looked out for each other. It would be okay. As long as they stayed together. Nothing could break them if they were together._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to anyone who gave my lil'ol story a shot. I have the first half already written so I hope to update every few days. Hopefully I can finish writing the rest of the story soon.   
> Thank you so much for the support. I would love it if you guys told me how I did.   
> Happy Halloween.


	3. Chapter 3

“Ace, Benny, Cool, Duke, Ed, Frank, Guy, Huey…”

The kid was listing names relentlessly. He had been through the alphabet twice already and had yet to remember his own name. But he swore it was on the tip of his tongue. He was like a super happy kid. For whatever reason the current situation didn’t seem to bother him. He didn’t care that a mystery man was trying to steal him, nor that he was chained to a bed, nor that his father beat him or even that he couldn’t remember his own name. Well he was a bit defensive about the last one. But he didn’t seem to think it was out of the ordinary. He was just excited about being let go.

“You don’t know where the key is?”

“If I did I wouldn’t need your help… Ike, Jim, King, L…”

The bottom desk drawer was locked. Thatch snapped it open easily, digging around the papers there. Hidden away at the bottom of the drawer was a small silver key. Thatch grabbed it triumphantly. It was only then that he realized the near constant talking had faltered.

“Kid?” He asked coming back to the bedroom. The boy was standing on the bed, the cuff around his ankle fully visible. As was the thick chain that ran along it and a handful of bruises Thatch had initially missed. They should probably get him to a doctor sooner than later.

“No names start with L.” The kid said simply, rocking back and forth on his feet.

“Yes there are. Thatch argued. Lloyd, Luke, Liam, Leo-” Thatch listed them off as he returned to the kid.

“Luffy!” He jumped on the bed, up and down.

“I don’t think that’s a name.” Thatch told him.

“It is too! It’s my name! SEE, I knew I didn’t forget. It’s Luffy. LUFFY!” He cheered hopping up and down. His legs gave out and he crashed onto the bed still laughing. “Take that!”

“You’re sure?” Thatch asked kneeling besides him. He nodded, sticking out his ankle so the man could unlock it. The key snapped into it, dropping the chain off. But the cuff stayed attached to his ankle. Thatch frowned, firmly testing it with his fingers. Was it really sea stone? Who would go through the trouble unless?”

“Luffy?”

“Hm?”

“Do you have a devil fruit power by any chance? I can’t get this off.”

“Wat’s that?”

“You know… a devil fruit. The fruit you eat and it gives you powers.”

“Cool!” Thatch helped him down from the bed only for him to fall to the floor the moment his feet touched.

Thatch cussed as he pulled him back up, bringing him to sit on the bed. “Are you okay?”

The boy frowned, rotating his unbound ankle. “I think it’s broken.”

“What?” Thatch unwrapped the bandages that ran up the first half of his leg starting at his toes and going nearly all the way to his knee. The skin was a deep purple black. It looked dislocated. “What happened? How were you jumping around? Can you walk. Do you need me to carry you?”

“I can do it!” Determination was in his eyes and Thatch had to give it to him. He was tough.

“I know you can. But if it gets too be too much, I can carry you alright. It’s going to be a bit scary outside. There is lots of fighting and you might see something really bad. Want to hold my hand?”

His nose crinkled. “No way, that’s for babies.” He tested the ankle again, a bit gentler. Smiling when he stabilized himself.

“How old are you Luffy?” Thatch took him by the wrist, helping to off put some of his weight. Apparently, that was acceptable as long as it wasn’t his hand.

“Dunno.”

Thatch wanted to be surprised but at this rate he had been expecting it. Something was seriously wrong with this kid. Brain damage? That would explain the absolute lack of fear. But he seemed lucid enough, kept up a conversation.

“How old are you?”

“Thirty-four,” Thatch told him.

“That’s really cool that you know that off the top of your head.” He swung their arms between them as Thatch led him from the bedroom into the office. 

“Most people do.” Thatch unlocked the door, peeking down the hallway. The way looked clear. He pulled Luffy along. “If I tell you to cover your eyes do it all right.”

“Kay,” He agreed easily, looking around in excitement. “Wow, it’s so big out here. Hey, can we go exploring?”

“Now’s not the best time,” Thatch told him. “Have you never seen the rest of the ship?”

“I think I have. Just a while ago. I’m not supposed to leave. I get in trouble when I disobey him.”

“Your father?” Thatch asked. The kid nodded. “Is that what happened to your ankle?”

He shrugged. “Maybe. He does that when he gets mad.”

“You don’t know how your ankle broke?”

“Not this again.”

“It’s super weird right?”

“Your being mean.” The kid tried to pull his hand away but Thatch held on.

“Okay- okay. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to upset you. I just want to understand what happened to you.”

“Nothing has happened to me. I’m just- I’m just me.”

“Just Luffy,” Thatch said after a second, giving the other an apologetic smile.

“Just Luffy.” He agreed, swinging their arms back and forth again.

* * *

_Luffy screamed as two of his fingers were twisted back. Being made from rubber he had never been made to feel this pain before. But now that he was trapped with a sea stone cuff on his ankle there was nothing he could do as the guards broke both of the bones. He heard the snap before he actually felt it. And then it hit him all at once and he screamed. They released him and he fell to the floor, only vaguely aware of anything but the searing pain in his fingers._

_“He didn’t even bend, how disappointing.” The guard kicked at Luffy’s ribs, his heavy foot hitting an old bruise. Luffy curled into himself trying to protect his side._

_“Of course not idiot, he is wearing sea stone.”_

_“Should we take it off?”_

_“Boss will have our heads.” The guard brought his boot down on Luffy’s head, pushing him into the floor. And then, in an instant the weight was gone._

_Ace had tackled the man to the side, pinning him against the floorboards as he began to punch him. The others were quick to respond. Running over as they tried to pull him off their crewmate. But Ace held on, furiously beating the other man even as three pairs of hands tried to drag him away._

_“Ace,” Luffy whined as he forced himself to a sitting position. He rose on unsteady legs, grabbing the shirt of the nearest man as he tried to pull him away._

_“Stop hurting him!” Luffy said. But the guard just pushed him back to the floor. He hit his head with a smack, laying there dazed as the sounds of the fight drifted in and out of his head._

_And then Sabo was beside him, picking him up and holding him against his chest as he screamed at their brother. “ACE STOP! STOP IT!”_

_Ace looked up, blood splattered over the side of his face. His eyes locked on Sabo, holding Luffy whose twisted fingers were curled protectively against his chest. And he stopped fighting._

_The man under him moved violently, hitting him across the face and knocking him to the floor. He kicked him in the stomach a few times for good measures before hauling him back to his feet._

_“Think your tough do you.”_

_Ace growled at him, showing his bloodied teeth._

_“Take him to the room, third time this week huh. Going for the record?” Ace just rolled his eyes._

_“Don’t please!” Sabo screamed. “I’ll do anything.”_

_“Oh, shut up.” The guard mocked him. “One more word out of any of you filthy slaves and I’ll take that kid in your arms and throw him overboard. I swear to god I will do it.”_

_Both his brothers froze and Luffy felt Sabo’s arms tighten around him. He didn’t like the feeling in the room. It felt- murderous. He narrowed his eyes at the guards, the words building on his tongue. But before he could say one thing to the monsters threatening his brothers Sabo’s hand covered his mouth._

_“We don’t want that do we?” He asked coming over to stand in front of Sabo. “Well?” He grabbed Sabo’s jaw, forcing the other to look him in the eyes._

_Sabo met the man’s gaze head on, fury burning in his eyes as he shook his head._

_“Say it,” He threatened._

_“No.”_

_“No-,” He prompted._

_“No sir.”_

_The man’s face split into a smile as he raised his hand to Sabo’s bruised cheek. “That’s right. No._

_“Bastard,” Luffy growled, his voice muffled by his brothers’ hand. But the man heard it all the same as he lowered his gaze to look at Luffy._

_“Oh, this one has guts, doesn’t he?” The man said as Luffy glared up at him._

_“No, don’t-,” Sabo began but the man put up his finger, silencing him. “Shh- I believe I said no talking. That goes for you too.” He told Ace who was struggling against the guards that held him._

_“Your awfully small to be mouthing out like that don’t you think?” The guard asked him. And Luffy growled in response. The things he would say if Sabo would only move his hand. But his brother did not let him go, instead he lowered Luffy until his feet touched the floor. Pinning him against him with the steel like grip over his mouth._

_“Sir,” Sabo spoke, his voice low and respectful. Nothing like his usual tone. When the man didn’t immediately bark at him to shut up, he continued. “I apologize on my brother’s behalf. Please forgive them.”_

_The man finally broke his gaze with Luffy to look up at him. “Is that so?”_

_Sabo nodded. “Our little brother is slow,” he tightened his hand as he said that daring Luffy to try and correct him. “He is still young, and he doesn’t understand yet. So we are protective of him.”_

_While he was talking the man had brought his hand up again, pressing his palm into Sabo’s cheek. Sabo continued, like he didn’t even notice._

_“How old is he?”_

_“He just turned twelve.”_

_“Twelve huh?” He looked down at Luffy who glared up at him._

_“You’re a good kid aren’t you.” The man asked Sabo._

_“I wouldn’t know.” He told him coldly._

_“Too bad this one keeps getting you in trouble… I know you’ve been helping him do his work.”_

_“He’s still young. He will learn.” Sabo said._

_“So you’re asking me for a favor then?”_

_“Yes.”_

_“And That’s how you do it?”_

_Luffy felt the shift in the others chest as Sabo held back a sigh. He leaned into the man’s touch ever so slightly as he asked._

_“Please sir.”_

_“Fine.” The man conceded. “But house train that mut next time or else.” He dropped his hand wiping the dirt away on his pant legs. “Your filthy,” He remarked. A fact the three of them were well aware of._

_“Take the other away.”_

_“NOO!” Luffy and Sabo cried together as the guards began to drag Ace towards the doorway._

_“No, please stop! I’ll do anything.” Sabo cried. “Don’t hurt him anymore- you might kill him.”_

_“Look here slave,” The guard snapped. “Rules have been broken. We’ve been disrespected. You asked your little brother to be forgiven for his mouth. I allowed it. Now you want your other brother to be forgiven as well. How will you three learn your lesson if no one gets punished”_

_“You can punish me!”_

_“Sabo No!” Ace screamed once again struggling against them. “Don’t you dare!”_

_“Oh but you didn’t do anything wrong did you. No, only the guilty are punished here.” That was total bullshit, and everyone knew it. This man was enjoying the power trip he had over them. “So either you let us deal with that one, or.”_

_“Or?” Sabo asked shakily._

_“Don’t hurt Ace you jerks!” Luffy cried out only to be roughly shushed by his brother.”_

_The man knelt down beside him and Luffy glared straight into his eyes. “Or he goes free and you let go of this one so he can take his place in the punishment cell.” The man patted Luffy’s filthy hair like he was a misbehaving child._

_“I-,” Sabo stammered, his hands holding Luffy so hard it hurt._

_“Let go,” The man encouraged, trying to pull his hand free. But Sabo held onto him like his life depended on it._

_“SABO DON’T YOU DARE!” Ace screamed at him. “He Can’t Handle It. I Can.”_

_“I know,” Sabo said softly and Luffy looked up at him. Confused what was going on. But he knew he had messed up and now his brother was going to pay for it. He shook his head desperately at Sabo. Asking him not to let them do that to Ace._

_“I’m so sorry,” He told Ace._

_“You’ve made your choice then.” When Sabo didn’t answer the man turned to Ace who was still being restrained by the guards. “Tough luck for you isn’t it. Sounds like your brother doesn’t love you quite as much as he likes the little runt. Even though he started all this didn’t he.”_

_Luffy’s lip quivered. He had hadn’t he. He was the one who had insulted the man. That was why they had tried to break his fingers. And then he had screamed, bringing his brothers right to him. If he would have just stayed quite the men would have gotten bored and left eventually. But no, he had screamed because he was scared and in pain. He had wanted Ace and Sabo to come because he wanted them to save him. Like a weakling._

_“Anything to say about this?” The man asked Ace, unknowingly walking right into his brother’s temper._

_“Yea,” Ace said glaring daggers at him. “This isn’t Luffy’s fault so leave him alone. And if you ever touch either of them again you creep, I will break off your hands and stuff them down your throat, so you choke on them.”_

_Sabo’s face was pale with fear as he stared horrified at the man, whose face was beet red. He looked ready to blow. “TAKE HIM AWAY!” He screamed at the other guards and they hurried to do just that. He whirled around to the two of them, marching up to scream at them._

_“I want you to listen to me closely, especially you brat,” He spat. “I’ll let you hold onto him for now. But know this. The second we reach the auction I will make sure the three of you are separated. And stay that way for the rest of your lives, which you better hope are short. So take a good look at your big brother kid. Because soon you are never going to see either of them again. And there is going to be no one rushing to protect you then._

_It was the longest punishment yet. Ace was gone for an entire two weeks this time. He had been taken before. Many times. But never longer than a week. And despite what Sabo said Luffy knew it was all his fault. He had never hated himself before. He didn’t like the feeling._

_But when they came back from a long day of ship work, to Ace sleeping on the floor of their cell. Covered in injuries and grime, Luffy nearly cried with happiness. The second the guards unlocked the door he was on his brother. Hugging the hell out of him._

_“I missed you!” He said his arms tight around the others neck._

_Ace had been sleeping right before the Luffy attack. But now he sat up sleepily, hugging Luffy back. He would never admit it, but he was grateful for the affection. He had gotten nothing even remotely close to human affection for fourteen days._

_Sabo dropped down to his knees in front of Ace, whose arms were full of Luffy._

_“You look awful,” He said._

_“Thanks,” Ace told him. “I feel awesome.”_

_“I’m sorry Ace.” He told him seriously. “I should of-,”_

_“Save it for someone who gives a fuck Outlook.”_

_Sabo smiled at him as Ace wrestled his hands free from Luffy, pulling the two of them into a hug._

_“I missed you guys.”_

_“Don’t leave again.” Sabo told him, resting his cheek on his shoulder._

_“It was so boring without you,” Luffy told him seriously. “You can’t play tic-tac-toads with only two people.”_

_“Yea you can,” Ace told him. They had made the rules after all._

_“No, you can’t.” Luffy told him seriously._

_“You can’t.” Sabo parroted smiling at Ace._

_“Whatever you guys say.”_

_Luffy fell asleep shortly after that. Laying half on Ace and half on the floor as he sprawled out, as he did in his sleep. Talking of food and drooling every so often._

_“You still up?” Ace whispered to his brother in the darkness of their cell._

_“Of course,” Sabo shifted a bit so he could see the outline of his brothers._

_“How are Luffy’s fingers?”_

_“Not good, they snapped two of the bones. I taped them up to try and get them to heal. He couldn’t move them afterwards.”_

_“Can they be fixed?”_

_“I hope so.” Sabo sighed. “We were worried about you.”_

_“Yea, sorry. I think I royally pissed him off. I probably should have kept my mouth shut. But that creep was asking for it and honestly that felt really good.”_

_“No, I should apologize. I was supposed to be watching him. He wondered off and all this started. The two of them had an unspoken deal about Luffy. They knew him well enough to know that he was grossly unqualified for this type of cleaning work. He was doing his best, like them he wasn’t ignorant of the stakes. But he wouldn’t be Luffy if he was qualified. So he stayed with Sabo the entire day, and when he messed up or couldn’t do a task well enough the blond would cover for him. That meant taking on all of his work and Luffy’s as well._

_Often times Luffy would only make a task worse. Like today he had to polish every single plate. Which he did. But he hadn’t realized that his rag had gotten dirty, so by the end the plates looked worse than when he started. Meaning Sabo had to polish all the cutlery on the entire ship, and then redo every single plate in addition to the glasses because one of the guards had caught him and said, “If you have time to do his job for him then we didn’t give you enough of your own did we?”_

_Not that Ace and Sabo were good at this type of thing either, but they were quicker learners then their little brother who was all kinds of ADHD._

_In exchange Ace took every punishment that Luffy brough upon himself with the messes not even Sabo could cover for. Like the time he had been ordered to bring them more rum from the cellar, and dropped it while he was carrying it back to them. Ace had lied and said he had done it, the same way he had broken the glasses the week before, and accidently thrown the laundry into the sea the week before because they weren’t properly tied to the line. Needless to say, Luffy was a domestic workers lawsuit waiting to happen._

_Luffy would always beg Ace not to and scream at the top of his lungs that it had been him. But before the guards could even listen Ace would have a biting insult on his tongue and who did it became irrelevant in the frenzy to beat Ace senseless._

_To anyone else in their situation Luffy would be a liability. And yes, he kind of was. But he was their liability. After all they had been cleaning up his messes and dealing with the shit he brought upon them since they were kids. They just did it naturally now._

_But they needed him as much as he needed their protection. After all who else but Luffy would still be smiling and laughing after two months in this hell hole. He was like being around a ray of sunshine, long after the sun had gone out._

_“This isn’t your fault,” Ace’s low voice brought him back to reality._

_“I know… I just wish you would take better care of yourself. If not for you then for us.”_

_“I know,” Ace told him. “But like it or not I’m going to protect you two. After all, you’re my little brothers” He added teasingly._

_“I don’t remember agreeing to that,” Sabo told him._

_“I think you should say it, just once.” Ace teased him. “You will feel so much better.”_

_“Get bent.”_

_“Thank you-,”Ace tried._

_“Go to hell.”_

_“-For being such.”_

_“An asshole,” Sabo finished for him._

_“A good older brother.”_

_“I’ll say that when you start acting like it.” Sabo advised._

_“Acting like what Sabo?” He tried. “What will you be saying? Just to be clear. That I am your….”_

_“I hate you.”_

_“Yea, you do.”_


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ace protects Luffy in an impossible situation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for mentions of child abuse, kidnapping and gun violence.

“Well you would go to search an enemy ship and come back with a child?”

“Marco meet Luffy.”

“And who do we have here?” Marco asked. “Slave?”

“I don’t think so,” Thatch said. “He said he is the captain’s son.”

Well that complicated things. It was one thing to kill a lying, maniacal, torturous bastard who had it coming. It was another to do it in front of his child.

“Do you have like a mom or someone we can take you to?” Marco asked him.

“I don’t think so.” Luffy replied.

“So what? You want to let the captain go just because he takes his kid to work with him?”

“No,” Thatch said. “Not when he breaks said child’s ankle and chains him to the bed so he can’t leave.”

“The bruises, those are him as well?”

“It looks like it.”

“So how do you want to handle this?”

“I was going to confront the bastard. Find out where this kid came from.”

Marco nodded. “We can figure out what to do with him then.”

“Do with me?” Luffy asked. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing,” Thatch assured him. “We just want to take you back home. But we have to talk to your father first. Okay?”

“You’re not going to kill me right?” Luffy asked him. “Usually when people say that that’s what they mean.” That would make sense since he was on a slave ship. _Dealing with someone_ had taken a different meaning here. 

“I swear no one’s going to hurt you.” Thatch promised and Marco nodded.

“See we have a captain too Luffy, a really powerful one.” Marco told him. “And he would never forgive us if we did something so low as to hurt a child. So no one, not us or our friends are going to lay a finger on you alright. That’s a promise on our flag. Do you believe me?”

Luffy nodded.

“Good.” Marco smiled. “Stay here for a second okay, I need to talk to Thatch, adult stuff.”

He ushered his friend away, going just out of earshot of the child so they could talk freely.

“Still no sign of the captain, but he’s here. I know it. We got a good portion of the crew, but the stragglers are still out there.” Marco informed him.

“And the slaves?”

“We have only come across two that are still alive.”

“Two,” Thatch asked. “Last I heard it was just that one. The teenager.”

“Yea well, I found another. He needs medical attention. Desperately. He left a trail of blood behind him.”

“So where is he then?”

“He got away.”

“You’re kidding,” Thatch said. “He escaped you?”

“Not quite, I gave him to James to take back to the ship. Twenty minutes later James had a bump the size of an apple on his head and the kid was in the wind.”

“So it was a kid?”

“He looked about the same age as the first one. But he was in worse shape. We need to get to him before the guards do.”

“We will find him,” Thatch promised his friend. For Rose. They would save every slave they could.

“So, this kid?” Marco pressed. “What’s the deal with him. Most kids in his place would be crying their eyes out.”

“Oh he is super weird.” Thatch agreed. “I have no clue what’s going on but everything about this situation is off. I was going to ask if you could take a look at him, I think he might be drugged.”

“He seemed pretty coherent,” Marco said looking back over at him. He was zipping around the room, running from wall to wall like they had taken him to the park instead of a storage room.

“He seems normal, but he can’t tell me anything about himself. Not his age, or family, he couldn’t even remember his own name for a solid five minutes. He had to go through the alphabet a dozen times before he could tell me.”

Marco looked at him. “Okay that’s super weird. You think it’s drugs?”

“What else could it be? He wasn’t even phased when he met me. If anything, he was ecstatic that I was letting him go outside. This goes beyond just an abuse situation doesn’t it?”

“I honestly can’t tell you,” Marco said turning his gaze to where Luffy was happily zipping around without a care in the world. He did a handstand, walking about ten steps on his hands before collapsing onto his back in a fit of giggles. Honestly the way he was acting Marco wouldn’t be surprised if he had never left the room before.

“Hey, Luffy can you come here?” Marco asked and the kid bounced over to them. Smiling brightly.

“Yea?”

“I’m going to take a look at you. Is that okay?”

“Uh, I guess.” He looked longingly at the open room behind them. “Want to see me do a Flip!”

“In a minute.” Marco told him, gently pushing him to sit down on one of the boxes. “Thatch here was telling me that you don’t really remember much. You can’t tell me how old you are?”

He shook his head as Marco checked his eyes. “Last name?” He shook his head again.

“Do you know the time?”

“No.”

“Do you know what day it is?”

“No?”

“Month then? Year. Century. Anything.”

“What’s a century?”

He looked at his head first, feeling for any scars. But all Marco found were more bruises. The same with the rest of him. There were no needle marks on his arms or under his shirt just a whole lot or fresh or healing injuries that were obvious the result of being beaten.

“Your father did all of this?” Behind him Thatch swore at the extensive network of bruises on his stomach.

“I dunno,” Luffy said looking down at himself.

“Okay Luffy,” Marco crouched down in front of him. “Let’s start small. Do you remember yesterday?”

“Yea.”

“What did you do?”

“I woke up. Ate breakfast.”

“You were chained up? How did you get breakfast?”

“I’m not always chained up.” Luffy told them. “Only when I’m not in my bed. I guess cause theirs a padlock on it.”

“There’s a padlock on your bed?” Thatch asked feeling sick.

“Yea, it’s like one of those beds that closes, you know.” He gestured with his hands the shutting of a lid.

“You mean a trunk? You sleep in a padlocked trunk?”

Luffy nodded, oblivious to the men’s absolute disgust. “Except when he has to go to work he put’s me in his bed, he says so I don’t get scared when I wake up and he’s gone. Which is weird cause I don’t get scared. I’m not a little kid.”

“Yes, your very mature,” Marco humored him. Luffy nodded in agreement.

“What if he is gone all day?”

“Then I have to stay in bed all day, which is so boring. I always just fall back asleep.”

“What if you have to pee or something?”

“I only get to drink water and food when he’s not at work.”

“Oh, that’s it this guy is dead!” Thatch said. Marco put his hand on his shoulder, trying to reign him in a bit so he could get to the bottom of this.

“So yesterday, you woke up and he let you out of the box and what?”

“I got double breakfast!” Luffy smiled at the memory.

“What’s that?”

“It’s you know- breakfast but double.” He said it like they were idiots. “I get twice the food. It’s awesome. Sometimes I get triple breakfast. But it’s only cause he didn’t feed me the day before because he was working. He said I complained so much about being hungry it gave him a headache.”

“So breakfast?”

“Then I took a shower… for like two hours.”

“It takes you two hours to shower?”

“No, I just have to stay there for two hours because he locks the door so I don’t bother him while he’s working. It’s really warm so I fall asleep again.”

“And after that?” Marco asked.

“He does work at his desk, and I get to run around the office. Sometimes when he is in a really good mood he let’s me run around both rooms and jump all over the place. But mostly I have to sit on the couch and stay quiet so I’m not distracting.” Thatch had a hard time believing Luffy was very good at that. He seemed like a high energy kid.

“Then I got double lunch and dinner. But I was running around too much after that, so I got put to bed super early.”

“Didn’t he have to leave to do captain stuff yesterday?”

Luffy nodded. “Yea, then I have to go back in the box.”

“Why is he so obsessed with keeping you there. Have you run away before?”

“Of course I have.” Luffy said it like they were idiots. “I’m not insane. I don’t want to stay in that room all day. It is so boring. But I always get caught super quickly cause the crew works for him and stuff. And then he get’s super mad and freaks out so it’s harder to escape the next time.”

“Your ankle,” Thatch said horrified.

“Luffy don’t take this the wrong way, but you are surprisingly well adjusted for growing up in a box.” Marco told him. “You don’t have any muscle atrophy. In fact, aside from being underweight your health looks good. I guess that depends on how old you really are though?”

“What if I’m like forty or something?” He asked. “Whoah! I would be older than you Thatch!”

“You’re not forty,” Marco told him. “Your somewhere between ten and preteen if I had to guess.”

He made a face. “That’s no fun.”

“So you remember yesterday what about the day before?”

“Yea.”

“And the week before that?”

“Yea.”

“The last month.”

“I think so.”

“The last year?”

Luffy shrugged. “Kind of.”

“I don’t understand what that means?”

He tugged on his hair in frustration. “I don’t know. It happened. I remember it happening. Like I know I lived it. But I don’t remember the details.” He sighed in frustration. “It’s hard to explain. You keep saying I forget. But I don’t. Cause then it would be like something is missing right? But nothing’s missing.”

“So you think you lived your whole life this way?” Marco asked.

Luffy shrugged. “I guess.”

Thatch shook his head at Marco, over Luffy’s shoulder. Not buying it for a second. And Marco was inclined to agree.

“Okay show me your handstand.” Marco told him and Luffy jumped up excitedly.

“No way,” Thatch said as they watched Luffy tumble around the room. “He’s not withdrawn, not socially awkward. He’s a bit weird. But overall, he seems pretty normal.”

“I know,” Marco told him. “He’s definitely had people, obviously different people. Taking care of him. I can’t explain what’s wrong with his memory. His pupils were dilated beyond normal but there were no signs that he was being drugged aside from that. He seems to have been malnourished in the past, but he isn’t currently being starved.”

“So what do we do with him?” Thatch said watching him run around.

“You were right,” we need to have a talk with his father. “No way that monster raised a kid this happy. He probably took him from someone. If we can find out who then we can take him back.”

“And if we can’t?”

“Then I guess we are going to be babysitting him for a little while.”

* * *

_“Half portions for half men,” The guard said as he dropped the plates into their cell. Ace and Sabo would get a half bowl while Luffy always got a half of that. Because, in their words; he was a half of their half. Which meant that twice a day he got a quarter portion of food and water. His brothers, in the truest sign of love, would share equally with him. So they each had the same amount. Which was nice of them. But also not enough for any of them. Luffy felt it the hardest. He had started getting tired and passing out during the day. Usually at work. Sabo was always quick to cover for him. And Ace would take the fall when he failed to salvage the situation._

_Ace passed out all the time. His narcolepsy was made worse by the hunger and his injuries he went down once a day at least. At first the guards had punished him as severely as they punished Luffy. But soon it became too much effort for them. After all they had things to do that weren’t beating up a snoring teenager for an hour each day. That seemed to lose it’s appeal and after the second week the guards would just make him finish whatever work he had missed during the nighttime. But Sabo and Luffy always helped so it never took very long._

_Except for tonight. Because tonight Luffy had done something horrible. He had been too hungry and passed out on the floor. He had knocked a lantern over which started a fire that burned through three boxes of stored food until they could get it under control. Unsure of what to do he had taken off. Hiding himself between two barrels on one of the lower levels of the ship._

_He stayed there for an hour, watching the thudding feet of guard’s trample past as they searched for him. They knew it was him, they had seen him down here. There was no getting out of this one._

_He sniffed, bringing his knees tighter against him. If he closed his eyes really hard he could pretend he was back home. His grandpa was visiting him and he was hiding in the jungle. He had to be quiet because he didn’t want to get punched. But Garp would just kick him around a bit, try and toughen him up. Nothing like these guys. They would kill him._

_“Luffy.”_

_He felt his nose begin to run again._

_“Luffy it’s me, where are you?” He recognized Ace’s feet as they past. His brother sounded scared. That was bad._

_Wiping his nose with the back of his hand Luffy crawled out of his hiding spot. His brother turned around, relief on his face as he caught sight of him. “Oh thank god. I thought they were going to find you first.”_

_“I’m sorry.” Luffy’s lip trembled. “I don’t want to die Ace,” He sniffed again. “They keep saying they are going to kill me. Please don’t let me die.” He didn’t really know what he was asking for. He was just scared._

_Ace opened his mouth; his eyes were soft. And then he froze. His eyes looking beyond Luffy._

_“So you want me to die instead of you?” There was nothing kind in his voice anymore._

_“No,” Luffy hiccupped._

_“That’s what you’re asking.”_

_“I don’t want anything to happen to you. I’m just scared.”_

_“Do you know how much I’ve been taking care of you? Just because you’re scared.” He snarled. “Do you know how much of a burden you are to us? I would be fine, if I didn’t have to keep constantly cleaning up your messes. Ever think of that?”_

_“I’m sorry.” Luffy pulled his hat down over his eyes. “I didn’t want you to get hurt for me.”_

_“Well I did, over and over and over.”_

_“Why are you saying this stuff?” Luffy was trembling unsure of what to do._

_“Because I asked you to cover for me one time, just one time. And you try to hide.”_

_“You asked me to cover for you?” Luffy repeated stupidly. “But I was the one-,”_

_“God your stupid!” Ace said in exasperation, running his hands through his hair. And for a second, he sounded like his usual self. But then the moment was gone._

_He pulled a book of matches from his pocket to show Luffy. “They might have taken my powers away, but I can still destroy things. I burned the cargo hold, and with any luck I can burn this whole ship down before those idiots even notice.”_

_Thoroughly confused now Luffy tried to come towards Ace. But the older boy pushed him away. He lit one of the matches, throwing it strait towards Luffy._

_He cried in surprise as it hit his arm. He brushed it to the floor, rubbing the burned skin on his arm as he tried to approach Ace. Only to get hit in the face with another match._

_“Ace stop, they’re going to get mad at you.” He rubbed his forehead._

_“Like you care.”_

_“I don’t want anything to happen to you,” Luffy insisted. “I’m sorry I asked you for help. I won’t ever do it again. I promise. I’ll deal with everything on my own. Just please don’t hate me. I don’t want you to hate me.”_

_“Lu,” Ace said caught off guard. And Luffy wrapped his arms around his brother’s middle, burying his head into his chest as he started to cry._

_“I’m sorry.”_

_And the next second he was thrown to the floor._

_“Get Off Me!” Ace snarled._

_Luffy tried to crawl towards him but Ace slammed his foot into his stomach._

_“GO!”_

_When he shook his head, Ace kicked him again and again. “Get off!”_

_“Stop,” Luffy cried as he sat up, trying to get to Ace again. His brother grabbed the collar of his shirt and threw him down the other end of the hallway._

_“If you don’t leave right now, I will hate you forever! I mean it!” Ace screamed._

_The thought of being hated by him, forever and ever had Luffy pushing himself to his feet. He ran as fast as he could down the hallway. He was crying so hard by the time he reached the stairs that he ran smack into the railing. He hit the floor with a thud. He lay dazed on the floor, staring up at the ceiling._

_Ace hated him. He didn’t think so. But everything Ace had said was right. He was a burden to his brothers. He needed to get up, he needed to tell one of the guards what he had done. It was the only way Ace wouldn’t hate him forever. Even if they killed him. But for the life of him he couldn’t stop crying because he was being abandoned by the person, he never thought would leave him._

_“Here he is!” One of the guards called out from the top of the stair way._

_Luffy closed his eyes, gasping out as he heard the feet come down the stairs. “I DID IT!” He screamed as loud as he could. “I CAUSED THE FIRE. IT WAS ME. I DESERVE TO BE PUNISHED.”_

_“Yea we know idiot,” One of the guards said, yanking Luffy’s arm back as they pulled him up. “Why do you think we’ve been looking for you half the night?”_

_“Are you going to kill me?”_

_“Yea, probably. You’re not much use to us. Especially if you keep doing shit like this.”_

_“Can you- can you leave my brothers alone.” He sobbed._

_“If they don’t interfere, we don’t have any reason to.” The man said. But he was interrupted by a shout from the hallway._

_“FIRE! FIRE ON THE SHIP! Get help!”_

_“What did you do?” The man swore as he called to his friends. “Don’t move.” He yelled at Luffy as they sprinted towards the cry._

_Luffy didn’t move. He didn’t think he could anymore. He sniffed once and then again and again trying to get his breathing under control. Even as the hallway filled with the smell of smoke which stung his eyes and made it hard to breathe._

_A few minutes later he heard a lighter set of footprints come down the stairs as Sabo finally caught up to them._

_“Luffy!” He screamed dropping besides the boy. “Thank god you’re okay.” He tried to hug him but Luffy pushed him away scrambling back._

_“You hate me!” He cried._

_“What no,” Sabo said._

_“Ace hates me.”_

_“Who said that?”_

_“He did,” Luffy said bringing his knees to his chest. “I mess everything up for you guys. He said he hates me forever.”_

_“Luffy,” There were gentle but firm hands forcing his head up. “Look at me.” His brothers face was pale and there was something close to terror in his eyes. “Where is Ace!”_

_Luffy pointed a finger towards the hallway, and Sabo was up and running in an instant. Leaving his little brother sobbing at the bottom of the stairs._

* * *

_The fire was almost put out by the time Sabo got there. The entire hallway had gone up in smoke before the guards got a handle on it. Ace was already on his stomach. He was being pinned by two men as they screamed at him._

_“Of course, it was the flame starter!” The guard remarked. “Take the fire out of a pyromaniac and their still pyro. With or without powers.”_

_“Too bad you couldn’t die with the fire.” Ace hissed at them. One of the guards slammed his head against the ground for that._

_“Do you even know how much trouble you’re in? We ought to kill you for this.”_

_“No this is beyond us; someone go get the captain.”_

_And something inside Sabo snapped. He screamed as he ran towards his brother. But before he had even made it halfway down the hallway one of the men grabbed him._

_“There you are goldilocks. I was wondering where you went off too.” The man said as Sabo thrashed in his grip. “Look what happens when you don’t watch him closely enough.”_

_“STOP!” Sabo screamed at the top of his lungs. “IT WASN’T HIM!”_

_“Oh yea, then who was it? That kid? You.”_

_“YES!” Sabo cried. “IT WAS ME. ANY ONE BUT HIM!”_

_“Shut up Sabo!” Ace hissed._

_“Cute try kid, but it was flame head here. I watched him light the hallway up like a Christmas tree.”_

_Sick and tired of this and everything Sabo drove his elbow straight into the nose of the man who was holding him. He heard him cry out as he was released. He threw himself forwards, pushing ahead towards Ace. He had to save him- he had too._

_There was a bang, loud enough to shatter his ear drums. And the next thing he knew he was on the floor. For a second, he thought he had been pushed. But then he felt the pain in his ankle and saw the blood began to pool around him._

_That was a gunshot. They had shot him. His fingers gripped the wound, instantly becoming slippery. He distantly heard Ace screaming as he was pinned down. And then someone hit him across the back of the head and he crumpled into the floor where he stayed as the world swam in and out of focus._

_“Jesus did you kill him?” A voice asked above Ace’s screaming. He felt someone grab his shoulder and he groaned in pain._

_“Naw, he is just in shock.”_

_“What do we have here?” A soft voice broke out and in an instant the room became quiet._

_“Captain,” One of the men stuttered. “One of the slaves tried to set some fires. But we apprehended him.”_

_“Oh, and this one?” Sabo felt his hair being touched but he couldn’t bring himself to sit up or do anything other than lay brokenly on the floor._

_“He’s just trying to protect the other one. All three of them actually confessed.”_

_“Three of them?” The captains voice traveled across the room._

_“We thought their little brother set the fire,” The man corrected. “But it turns out this one was just trying to frame him. Real cold bastard. I watched the whole thing.”_

_“Is that so?”_

_“What do you want us to do with him? Should we kill him.”_

_“Noo,” Sabo moaned, finally finding his voice._

_“Shut it you.” The guard said hitting his shoulder._

_“Killing him won’t make up for the money he destroyed will it?” The captain said coolly. “No, he will live. He will just wish he hadn’t.”_

_“Please,” Sabo whispered into the floor. “Don’t hurt him.”_

_“Take him away,” One of the guards said._

_“Sabo, Sabo.” Ace’s voice was gentle but insistent. It took a few tries, but Sabo managed to lift his head from the floor and his blurry vision fixed on Ace._

_“M’ sorry,” He choked out. But Ace shook his head as the guards hauled him to his feet._

_“Take care of Luffy while I’m gone okay. He isn’t strong like you and me yet. So you have to protect him.”_

_“Please don’t go,” Sabo whispered._

_But they took Ace away all the same. And unlike the other times they never brought him back._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your support guys. I really appreciate it. You guys keep this story going!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sabo tries to find Luffy.

“Luffy!” Sabo cried out as he ran into the captain’s chambers. It had taken over an hour of running around the upper levels to find it. But now that he was here it seemed like he had been too slow.

“Luffy come out … Please,” He begged as he searched the office, looking under the desk before continuing to the other rooms. He had to be here. Where else would the captain of put him. Unless he wasn’t with the captain anymore.

“LUFFY!”

But there was no answer. He tried the bedroom next, finding the bed unmade and a chain unlocked. Sabo picked it up, giving it a tug to test the strength.

“Yes, you’re such a good parent,” He mocked under his breath.

The captain hadn’t mentioned anything about forcibly keeping Luffy here. Not when he had bragged to Sabo about it what felt like a lifetime ago. He had said that Luffy was his family now. And that Luffy loved him more than he ever loved Sabo.

Sabo didn’t know about all that. But it wasn’t like they ever had to force Luffy to stay with them. He kicked the bed in frustration, completely out of ideas as to where either of his brothers were. He was running out of time.

Luffy’s straw hat was tied around his neck. He had been holding onto it for him ever since he had been taken away. Sabo didn’t know if he even remembered it anymore but either way he would keep it safe for him.

Even when situations seemed hopeless, like they did right now, Luffy could always see the bright side of things. Sabo needed that the most right now.

“I don’t know what to do Lu,” He told the empty bed. “I just- I just miss you.”

“YOU!” A voice hissed and Sabo spun around startled.

The captain stood in the doorway. He had been so distracted by his thoughts he hadn’t heard the other approach. But it was too late to run now. Not when the man was blocking the door. Sabo took a step back, feeling caught off guard. This was not good.

“You took him!” The man snarled. “I told you- I told you to forget about him! He chose me, not you!”

“He didn’t choose you,” Sabo yelled back at him, even as his back hit the bed.

“WHERE IS HE!” The man roared and the fury in his voice was frightening.

“I Don’t Know!” Sabo snapped. “If I did, I wouldn’t be here!”

“LIAR!”

Sabo’s hand tightened on the chain, angered by the accusation. “I never lied about anything! Unlike you! This is what you think love is?” He threw the chain at the man.

It hit him on the side of his face and he crumpled like paper. And Sabo took off, brushing past the man as he sprinted out of the bedroom.

The captain’s hand snaked out to grab his ankle and Sabo fell to the floor, the gun skittered from his waistband. He kicked back blindly before pushing himself onto his feet and bolting towards the door, abandoning the weapon. But the captain was right on his heels. He heard the stumbling of the man as he chased Sabo down the hallway.

There was a bang, and he felt something fly past his foot, sending him crashing once more to the ground. He rolled onto his back, just in time to see down the barrel of his stolen gun, as the captain pointed it at him.

“I should have gotten rid of you months ago!” The man hissed, his finger tightening on the trigger.

Sabo moved instinctively, his foot colliding with the barrel of the gun, knocking it off course just as it went off. The bullet lodged into the floor inches from his head in a spray of splinters. 

Not giving the bastard time to shoot again Sabo wrapped both of his feet around the man’s hand and twisted his body. The gun was yanked from his grip as it fell to the floor once more.

Sabo dove for it but the captain was quicker. He fell onto the blond, knees on either side of him as he tried to wrap his hands around his neck.

“I told you to stay away from my son!” The man spat as he tightened his hold.

Sabo gasped, trying to pull the arms away.

“He’s not your damn son!” He breathed, bringing his knee up to hit the man in his ribs. But his weak attempts of freeing himself did little more than irritate him. Kidnapping someone, out of misplaced abandonment issues or whatever that psycho had going on in his brain, did not make him a father.

Sabo would have gladly told him this, but he didn’t think he could. Dark spots were beginning to dance across his eyes, and he knew he would pass out soon.

And just then, at the moment he was sure he was going to die, something slammed into the captain’s head and he collapsed onto Sabo. 

He brought in grateful breaths, choking on nothing as his vision slowly came back to him. His eyes were watering from the strain of everything.

He felt the weight disappear as the captain was shoved off of him and he was carefully hauled to his feet.

“Ace?” Sabo whispered, his voice sounding damaged.

The older boy smiled at him, looping Sabo’s arm around his neck as he pulled him down the corridor. Just as the captain started to shoot at them again.

But Ace was faster. Adrenaline mixed with desperation had him sprinting down the hallway, dragging his brother besides him. He didn’t stop running until a full five minutes after the last gunshot. He had led them down so many side hallways and detours even Sabo was spectacularly lost.

Finally Ace stopped, dropping them both onto the floor when it felt like his legs were on the verge of collapsing under him.

Sabo was still trying to catch his breath, gasping on his hands and knees. Marathon sprinting for your life and being choked were a bad combination.

“That guy was pissed,” Ace said tipping his head back to the ceiling. “What did you do to him.”

Sabo threw his arms around the other’s neck, pulling him tightly against him. “Shut up.” He said. Ace smiled, retuning the gesture with all of his heart. The two of them stayed there, clinging on to one another on the floor of some forgotten hallway. Too scared to let go.

“I missed you,” Sabo spoke into his shoulder.

“I missed you too,” He told him. “So much I thought I was going to go crazy.”

“Your already crazy,” Sabo told him, tightening his arms. “Lighting the boat on fire. You idiot what were you thinking?”

Ace laughed a little bit, but he instantly regretted it when he saw Sabo’s face. The other looked like he was about to start crying. Something he had never seen Sabo do before. That was how you know you messed up big time.

“I don’t know, I saw Luffy’s face, and I saw the guard watching us and it just kind of happened.”

“Luffy thought you hated him.” Sabo told him softly.

“I know,” Ace said. “I’ll make it up to him. I promise.” He looked around, as if the littlest was going to somehow materialize. “So, where is he?”

Sabo froze, his eyes widening as he finally pulled away from Ace. Sensing something was seriously wrong Ace let go of him as well, meeting the frantic look of the other with fear.

“Ace I am so sorry.”

“No,” Ace said shaking his head in disbelief. “Don’t you dare.”

“Listen.”

“Sabo Don’t!”

“He’s alive,” Sabo said quickly, realizing what Ace thought he was trying to say. “He’s alive I know he is.”

Ace closed his eyes in relief, tilting his head back as he breathed air into his lungs, trying to steady his hammering heart. “Gods damn you. You scared me the other half of the way to death.”

“I’m sorry,” Sabo told him. “I didn’t mean to. I just- I have to tell you something.”

“Where is he?”

“Someone took him.”

“Took him?” Ace asked trying to understand. “Took him where? We’re on a boat.”

“He’s here, he has to be.” Sabo said. “It was that man that was chasing us. The captain. You’ve met him before. He’s the one who took Lu away.”

“What, why?”

“He is all kinds of crazy. I think he wants to play house. He said that Luffy is his now, and I should forget about him. I think he wants to like adopt him or something.”

“Adopt him? Aren’t we slaves to these people? What kind of slave trader adopts one?”

“I said he’s crazy.”

“Well then let’s go get him. We find that guy, beat the crap out of him and take Luffy back.”

“It’s not that easy,” Sabo told him. “Luffy’s not with him. That’s why he attacked me. He thought I had him.”

“Then where the hell is he?”

“I don’t know,” Sabo said. “Someone must have untied him. If It wasn’t us, or the captain it might have been the pirates.”

Ace’s face paled further, if that was at all possible. “We need to get him back quickly. Who knows what they will do to him.”

“They don’t seem like bad people, they were Rose’s friends.”

“Rose… that nice lady in the cell next to us?”

Sabo nodded. “Yea, she died.”

“Oh,” Ace said. “You liked her right.”

“Yea… I really did.” She was kind. That was a rare trait in people. Especially in a place like this. “They’re all dead now, everyone but us.”

Ace fell silent, looking at the ground as Sabo stared into space, imagining all those faces, personalities, and lives that had been destroyed on a whim. The whim of the man who had taken their brother.

“Ace listen, there’s something you don’t know. I didn’t know how to tell you?”

“With your voice, spit it out.” Ace told him. “I’ve had enough surprises today.”

“Luffy’s not… Luffy anymore.”

“Not- like… annoying anymore?” That was the first word out of Ace’s mouth. Any other time Sabo would have laughed at the others confusion. But right now he didn’t feel like anything would ever be funny again.

“No, I went looking for him a few months ago. I wanted to make sure he was… okay. And I found him.”

“Was he okay?”

“He was okay, okay enough, I guess. He’s not starving anymore at least. But he looked straight at me, and he didn’t know who I was.”

“What? How is that possible? Wait does he remember me?”

“I don’t know. But he was weird. Like spacy and kind of out of it.”

Ace was silent for a long moment before he answered. “You were supposed to look after him.”

“I know, I am so-so sorry.”

“No,” Ace said. “That wasn’t fair I didn’t mean that. I just- shit. I don’t know what we’re going to do. About any of this.”

“Me either,” Sabo told him, leaning against his shoulder in comfort. “We need to get Luffy back. We can worry about everything else then.”

Ace nodded, still looking unnaturally pale. His skin was covered in blood and soot. And coming from Sabo, who was nearing the point of leaving a dirt trail behind him, that was saying something. He sighed, pulling his sleeve over his hand as he gently wiped Ace’s face, careful of the wounds on his skin.

“You look awful,” He told him. “When was the last time you had any real food?”

“When was the last time any of us had real food,” Ace countered. “I’ll be okay Sab, at least until we can get out of here.” He reached out with his filthy hand to touch his brother’s cheek affectionately. “I only made it this far thanks to you. I would have starved without you. I know that. You always have a plan don’t you. Thank you Sabo.”

Sabo smiled back at him. “Like I would ever let anything happen to our big brother.”

“Ah, you said it. I finally got you to say it! Whose stupid now?”

“Still you and that was the only time. Ever. We are on equal terms got it?”

“Whatever you say little brother.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ace loves his little brother's.


	6. Chapter 6

“Then I’m going to go swimming and camping and fishing and sleep out under all the stars!” Luffy babbled excitedly. “And eat pancakes and a ton of meat every day! Whenever I want, and second and third and fourth breakfast!”

Thatch said nothing as he let Luffy ramble, the little kid sticking close to his side as they made their way through the ship. His plan was to take Luffy back to their ship where he would be safe and Thatch would be free to join the search for the captain. After all this was no place for a child. Either Luffy didn’t notice that they were currently in a warzone or he just didn’t care. Either way Thatch was grateful for the lack of drama and Luffy’s absolute absence of attachment to his father. It made all of this much easier. Instead he filled the silence with everything he planned on doing once he got off the ship and away from his controlling captor.

“Aren’t you a little bit nervous?” Thatch asked.

“-Bout what?” Luffy asked as he scurried over a partially smashed crate just for the fun of it. They were lucky to avoid the fighting so far but there was evidence of it littered all around.

“Everything,” Thatch told him. “This is all you know right?” He gestured around and Luffy nodded. “Well what are you going to do without it?”

“I just told you, I’m going to go swimming and-.”

“No I got that. I just- most kids in your place would be a bit worried.” Thatch just couldn’t figure him out.

“Nervous about what?”

“I’m not sure, the unknown can be a bit scary. So can change.”

“Yea but I didn’t like it here right?” Luffy said matter-of-fact-like. “So why would I be sad to leave. Besides why should I be scared? You guys said you won’t let anything really bad happen to me yea?”

Thatch smiled at him. Unable to argue with that. “Yea.” He assured him. “You’ll be okay.”

Luffy smiled brightly up at him, his wide eyes on Thatch’s face. Then just to the right of his head as something else seemed to grab his attention. The smile fell away as he reached out to clutch at Thatch’s hand, something he claimed to be too grown up to need.

Thatch felt Luffy’s hand at the same moment he heard a sound behind him.

“Don’t!” Luffy cried as something flew towards Thatch. The pirate shoved Luffy behind him a moment before someone attacked him.

The last thing Thatch saw was a strong hand reaching out for his face and then he knew nothing else.

* * *

_Luffy was inconsolable. It was nearing a week since Ace had been taken and since then they hadn’t been allowed to see him even once. Although Sabo was still fighting to make sure he got food._

_Luffy was taking it really hard. He thought the whole thing was his fault. Despite Sabo promising him that Ace didn’t actually hate him. Up until that point Luffy had been happy. Well happy-ish. He didn’t enjoy their current living conditions, but he found a way to keep smiling and laughing no matter how bad things had gotten for them. But now, Sabo could hardly get him to eat anything. He no longer left their cell to work. At first the guards had been furious but after trying every kind of kicking they knew they eventually gave up. But the incident had not been forgotten and one of the guards had given Sabo a terrifying warning._

_“Slaves who don’t work don’t get fed.”_

_“I know,” Sabo told him. Luffy hadn’t been wanting to eat anyways but Sabo forced him to eat some of his rations._

_“Well is he going to help out or not?”_

_“You took away our older brother,” Sabo tried to explain. “Luffy is just sad right now.”_

_“Yea, I don’t care how sad he is. Do you know how much men sell for?”_

_“Uh- no.” Sabo stammered._

_“Well not as much as females. And do you know how much scrawny kids like him sell for?”_

_“Ah-.”_

_“Less than even that. We’re going to make a quarter of the usual price off of him.”_

_“I-don’t.”_

_“Listen if he isn’t working, and we can’t motivate him to work anymore, and he won’t make us much money well then he isn’t really worth keeping, is he?”_

_“No,” Sabo said understanding what the man was saying. “He will! I’ll find a way. I’ll make him. I can do his work! Just- don’t hurt him please! I can’t. You can’t hurt him. He will work.”_

_“God shut up,” The man said. “You’re a broken record. Fine make him work again and you have nothing to worry about.”_

_Sabo was able to force Luffy off the floor of the cell to go back to work through a mixture of begging and guilt. He helped Luffy with every task he was assigned, and he watched him like a hawk. Unlike before there was no Ace to help so if Luffy messed up again and Sabo took the fall there would be no one to protect him. And Sabo had a horrible feeling the guards would do something awful if he left Luffy alone that long. His worst fear was to be dragged away only to come back to an empty cell. He couldn’t let that happen._

* * *

“Please don’t kill him!” Luffy begged as he threw himself on top of Thatch. The older man was unconscious on the floor, unaware of the danger he was in.

The captain pushed forwards; his sword drawn. “You disobeyed me.”

“I’m sorry!” Luffy cried his little fingers digging into Thatch’s shirt. “I won’t do it again.”

“You always disobey me. You have to learn; your actions have consequences.”

“I know!” Luffy cried. “Don’t hurt Thatch and I will listen to you. I’ll never run away again.” He cried out as the man tried to yank him off.

“You don’t realize who this man is.”

“It doesn’t matter!”

“He was going to hurt you.”

“Was not!” Luffy said getting angry now.

“You are too naive to know better. You know nothing of the real world! Now move aside.” His hands grabbed Luffy’s arm as he pried him off Thatch. Luffy cried as he was thrown to the ground. “You don’t yet understand anything. You are so ungrateful you would choose a stranger over your family?”

Luffy pushed himself to his feet. He had never seen the man so angry before. Not even when he tried to run away. If he didn’t do something, then Thatch was going to die. And Luffy didn’t want that.

“Dad PLEASE!” He cried grabbing onto the man’s arm before he could bring the sword down on the unconscious pirate. He almost always got his way when he called him that. And even though Luffy didn’t really know what it meant, not all the way, he didn’t care. So long as he won this one.

“If you let him go I won’t run away again. I won’t ever trust anyone else. I’ll listen to you always and go wherever you want me too. I won’t even complain anymore. Just don’t kill him.”

The man turned towards him, the blade inches from Thatch. “Is that so?”

Luffy nodded, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

“And you will keep your word?”

“Yes father.”

The man contemplated for a moment before he stepped back, sheathing his sword. “There will be consequences if you lie.”

“I won’t.”

The man nodded, holding out his hand. Luffy took it reluctantly as he followed him out of the room.

“Bye Thatch.”

* * *

_Luffy sat on the floor of the darkened dining room, cradling his head on his knees as he tried to stop himself from crying. Today was the fifth day back at work and he still felt awful. Nothing was the same without Ace and Luffy knew that it was all his fault. It was just a matter of time before he lost Sabo to a careless mistake and then he would be all alone. Forever. He should be trying harder to work, to be better. But he couldn’t stop being sad, no matter what Sabo said or did. If the guards caught him crying it would be bad, so until he stopped, he was hiding in here. Nobody ever really came in here so he would be left alone. Luffy knew that because he had hidden here before. It was only used at dinner time for the fancy men on the ship to eat and stuff. At least he thought._

_Right when he was about to go back, he heard the door open. Unsure of what else to do he scampered beneath the table, tucking himself behind one of the table legs just in time before the person entered._

_He couldn’t see them from below the table, but he saw their boots. They weren’t a guard. Their shoes were too clean for that. Hopefully that meant they wouldn’t get Luffy in trouble if they found him._

_He hoped they would leave quickly but they didn’t. Instead the boots lingered at one of the shelves and he heard the noise of rifling as some items were sorted._

_Everyone on this ship was weird he decided. Luffy pushed back a little further his tiny fingers tangling in the carpet underneath him. It was nice, really pretty and colorful. Not like anything he had seen before. Sabo said that meant it was for rich people and historically Luffy didn’t like rich people._

_There was something hard and cold buried in the carpet threads. He frowned as his hand closed around some type of metal circle. He picked it up, feeling along it in the darkness. It was heavy and shiny. It was the weight and size of a circular pond stone, only made of gold with a little silver chain running along it. Luffy liked how smooth it was under his fingers. Maybe he could show it to Sabo and they could throw it against the wall or something for fun. With that thought in mind he slipped it into his pocket._

_First he just needed the man to leave. But he wasn’t going fast enough. The boots had moved from the shelves to the bookcase before drifting closer to the table. And then without warning one of the boots kicked the table in anger, causing the entire thing to shutter. Luffy jumped, slamming his knee against the leg by accident. He covered his mouth to stop himself from crying out, but the damage had already been done. The man had heard the thunk._

_“Someone’s here.” Came a low voice. He didn’t sound angry at least. Luffy curled in on himself. He couldn’t get caught. He wasn’t going to cause more problems for his brother._

_When neither moved the man grew impatient and crouched down to his hands and knees to see for himself._

_“Listen, whatever this is about…” He trailed off as he locked eyes with Luffy. “Ah, you’re just a little boy?”_

_Luffy kept his mouth shut, tightening his hold on his knees._

_“You’re a slave then,” he said noticing the state of Luffy’s clothes and the cuff around his ankle. “They aren’t supposed to take them this young.”_

_Luffy didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t really think there were any rules when it came to stealing people._

_“It’s okay boy, come out from under there.”_

_Luffy didn’t dare move._

_The man sighed as he adjusted his position to sit on the floor so he could see Luffy better. “Yea, I can’t imagine they’ve been very nice to you have they? You look like you were having a rough time.” He was talking about the wet streaks on Luffy’s cheeks._

_Luffy wiped them clumsily, sniffing back the rest of the tears. He didn’t need sympathy from them._

_“What’s wrong little one?”_

_Luffy just shook his head. There was silence between the two of them for a moment before the man spoke. “I understand a little of what you must feel.” The man told him. “I’m a bit sad today as well. It feels as if the world is ending, but everyone else just keeps going about their lives. Like they don’t even care.”_

_“Your sad?” Luffy asked._

_The man nodded. “I miss my family. It’s the day- well I suppose it’s an anniversary of sorts. And I must have dropped them.”_

_“Dropped them?” Luffy echoed._

_“My pocket watch, it’s my prized possession. They gave it to me and it has my only picture of them. It’s like carrying around a little piece of them with me. But I’ve lost it now. Today of all days.”_

_“Oh,” Luffy said. He supposed that was sad._

_“And what about you…. I won’t tell anyone.” He promised._

_Luffy looked the man over again. He didn’t know why a stranger would care. But he guessed someone that missed their family might understand. “You won’t tell no one?”_

_“Not a soul.”_

_“I miss my brother.” Luffy said._

_“Your brother?”_

_He nodded, feeling the tears threaten to well up again. “They took him away a few days ago cause they think he started a fire but he was just protecting me and I can’t see him anymore and I think he hates me now but I don’t care I just really really really miss him and stuff and I want him to come back but he won’t ever and I think Sabo thinks he’s going to die and I want him back,” Luffy rambled._

_“Oh I see,” The man said after a moment. “So that’s what that was about.”_

_“You said you wouldn’t tell anyone right? Cause I don’t want to get my other brother in any more trouble.”_

_“You’re secrets safe with me if mine is safe with you. Now will you come out?”_

_Luffy reluctantly crawled out from under the table while the man went to turn the lights on. “So what’s your name little one?”_

_“I’m Luffy.”_

_“Well Luffy it’s nice to meet you.”_

_Luffy tilted his head, “Why are you being nice to me?” Certainly, the first person not in shackles who had been._

_“I suppose I have a bit of a soft spot for children. My sons around your age. You remind me a bit of him. He’s a tough thing too. Always looking out for his mother.”_

_“Oh,” Luffy said. “You lost their thingy, right?”_

_“My pocket watch.”_

_“What’s-it look like.”_

_“A pocket watch? Hm, It’s a flat circular item with golden engraving around the edges- my god!”_

_Luffy had pulled it from his pocket to show the man. “Here.” He handed it over easily._

_“You found it?”_

_“It was under the table.” Luffy told him._

_“You found it! And you would give it back. Just like that?”_

_“Of course, what would I do with it?” Luffy figured he should keep the hucking it at the wall part to himself. He wanted the man to have his family more then he wanted entertainment._

_“Surely you deserve some kind of reward!”_

_“Can you get my brother back!” He brightened at the thought._

_“I am sorry little one, it’s beyond my control.”_

_“Oh,” Luffy fell back on himself._

_“Anything else I can do?”_

_“No,” He told him. All he wanted was to see Ace. “It’s okay. At least you get your family back.” Luffy supposed that was good, even if he couldn’t have his._

_The man stared at him for a long moment before he put his hand out, patting his hair. “You are a good kid aren’t you? Thank you, for this. You should go before you get into trouble.”_

_“Kay,” Luffy said as he moved towards the door, waving at the man as he left._

* * *

“Thatch, Thatch,” The voice was getting insistent as the man felt his shoulder shake.

“Marco?” He said sitting up in confusion. His head felt horrible, like his brains got replaced with wet cement.

“What happened,” Marco questioned him. “Are you alright?”

“Uh,” Thatch looked around. He was lying in the center of one of the storerooms. He tried to wrack his brain for what had happened, but he came up empty. He had no clue. He didn’t remember even coming in here. His whole brain felt foggy and confused. Like he was disconnected from everything.

“Thatch where’s Luffy?”

Thatch looked around, panicking for the first time. He pushed himself to his feet even as Marco tried to stop him.

“LUFFY!” He called out to the darkened room. “LUFFYYY!” But there was no reply.

“This is not happening.” Thatch muttered. “Tell me I didn’t lose him.”

“You didn’t lose him,” Marco told him. “He was taken.”

“What? No!” That was so much worse.

“It was probably his dad. Damn I should have anticipated this.”

“I- I let him down,” Thatch said in horror. “That man is unhinged. Who knows what he is going to do to him.”

“We’ll get him back,” Marco assured him. “We are going to find the captain, make him tell us what in the hell is going on, and then we are going to get Luffy and every last slave still breathing off this boat and burn it to the ground.”

“Do you think Luffy can hold on?” Thatch asked not even trying to hide his horror at the situation.

“He’s survived this long,” Marco told him. “That kid is a lot tougher than anyone gives him credit for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry It’s been a hot second guys. I owe you this. Thank you so so much for your support. I love hearing what you guys thought. All of you make me want to keep updating as quickly as I can. And I am happy to say this chapter marks the mid-way point (It’s not going to be a terribly long story). But everything is about to go down in the next two chapters and things will start making more sense soon enough!
> 
> As always thank you for taking the time to read this. Please let me know what you thought.
> 
> (And don’t worry too much about Luffy, he will only be with his psycho dad for a very short while before he get’s to eat his pancakes and third and fourth breakfast.”

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell me what you thought.


End file.
